Rosatom says it wins tribunal ruling in Finnish nuclear plant dispute

Oct 10 (Reuters) - Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom said on Saturday that an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) tribunal had ruled in its favour in a long-running dispute with Finnish utility Fennovoima over the cancelled Hanhikivi-1 nuclear power project.

Rosatom said the tribunal found that Fennovoima had unlawfully terminated the contract for the construction of the planned plant in northern Finland in 2022.

The parties have been locked in legal disputes since Fennovoima scrapped the 7-billion-euro ($7.8 billion) project in May 2022, citing significant delays and political risks shortly after Russia launched its conflict in Ukraine.

Rosatom said the tribunal found that the project was making good progress when it was terminated. 

"Today's victory is important, but not final. We will continue to prove that we are right regarding the Finnish project in courts of various instances," Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev said in a statement.

Fennovoima did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The contract to build the 1.2 gigawatt plant was signed in 2013 with Fennovoima, a consortium in which Finnish stakeholders including Fortum, Outokumpu and SSAB originally controlled two thirds through a joint venture, and the Russian side held one third.

After the project's termination, Fennovoima wound down its operations and is primarily engaged in legal proceedings.

($1 = 0.8928 euros)

(Reporting by Anastasia Lyrchikova, Writing by Alessandra PrenticeEditing by Ros Russell)