The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC) on Thursday granted a construction permit for two new nuclear reactors on the east coast of Korea, eight years after the application was submitted.
At its regular meeting, the NSSC approved proposals from Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) to build the Shin-Hanul 3 and 4 reactors in Uljin, located about 224 kilometers southeast of Seoul.
The approval marked the first construction permit for nuclear reactors issued since 2016, when authorities gave the green light for the Saeul 3 and 4 reactors in Ulsan.
The application for Shin-Hanul 3 and 4 was submitted in January 2016, but the project was suspended in 2017 due to the previous Moon Jae-in administration’s shift in energy policy.
The review process resumed in July 2022 after the current Yoon Suk Yeol administration announced the resumption of the project.
“The construction approval is in line with the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s energy policy, which reverses the previous government’s nuclear phase-out policy,” Sung Tae-yoon, the presidential chief of staff for policy, said in a briefing.
“It paved the way for restoring the nuclear energy ecosystem, which was on the verge of collapse, and help the nuclear industry regain a momentum.”
The construction of Shin-Hanul 3 and 4 is set to begin Friday, with a goal of completing them in 2032 and 2033, respectively, Sung said.
The two new units will be 1,400-megawatt pressurized water reactors, similar to four other operating reactors, including Saeul 1 and 2.
The NSSC said that it confirmed the safety of the new reactors based on reviews of previous reactors and by examining design differences, particularly the latest technical standards applied to the new units.
The Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety also inspected the construction site and found no geological risks that would impact safety, according to the commission.
The NSSC said that it will thoroughly verify the safety of the nuclear power plants through pre-use inspections and performance tests of the reactor facilities.
Korea currently operates 26 nuclear reactors, with Saeul 3 and 4 still under construction.
In 2023, Korea’s nuclear plants generated 180,494 gigawatt hours of electricity, accounting for 30.7 percent of the country’s total power output, according to the KHNP. (Yonhap)
Source: The Korea Times