An international consortium, overseeing the construction of two light-water nuclear reactors in North Korea, announced Friday the project will be suspended for another year.

In a statement, the Executive Board of the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO) said it decided to extend the current construction freeze until December 1, 2005, in light of the continuing dispute over North Korea’s nuclear weapons programs.

In a statement, the consortium, consisting of the United States, South Korea, Japan, and the European Union, said the future of the project will be assessed and decided by the executive board before the suspension period expires. The remarks may indicate either a complete shut down or possible resumption of the project.

The statement further said KEDO will continue maintenance work in and outside the construction site after consulting with North Korea.

The two 1,000-megawatt light-water reactors, roughly one-third complete, were promised to the North as part of a 1994 deal to convince the communist country to give up its nuclear activities.

Construction was initially suspended in November last year, about a year after North Korea ousted international nuclear inspectors and said it would resume its nuclear development program.