Formal ground breaking on the site for two light water reactors (LWR) was on August 19, 1997, at Kumho, 30 km north of Sinpo.

[9][10] KEDO's first director, Stephen Bosworth, later commented "The Agreed Framework was a political orphan within two weeks after its signature".

[11] Arranging project financing was not easy, and formal invitations to bid were not issued until 1998, by which time the delays were infuriating North Korea.

KEDO ensured that the nuclear power plant project assets at the construction site at Kumho in North Korea and at manufacturers' facilities around the world ($1.5 billion invested to date) were preserved and maintained.

North Korea demanded compensation and has refused to return the approximately $45 million worth of equipment left behind.