South Korea's presidential election ended on the 9th. Yoon Seok-yeol, who had vowed to cancel his nuclear disarmament policy and make South Korea a nuclear powerhouse, was elected. This means that the country's nuclear disarmament plan, which has been implemented for several years, may take a major turn.
South Korean President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol pledges to use nuclear power to reduce carbon emissions
Since taking office in 2017, South Korea's current President Moon Jae-in has advocated for policies such as moving away from nuclear energy, retiring old nuclear power plants, and avoiding the construction of new ones.
Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the main opposition People Power Party, criticized the policy and pledged to use nuclear power to reduce carbon emissions and dependence on imported energy.
It is widely expected that the first step the new government will take to cash its promise will be to restart the currently halted construction of two nuclear reactors, Shinhanul 3 and 4, located 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul. Construction of the two reactors, with a total capacity of 1,400 megawatts, has been on hold since 2017 and was originally scheduled to be completed next year.
The current government aims to reduce the share of nuclear energy to 23.9%
Yoon also pledged to keep existing nuclear reactors operating as long as safety can be ensured, allowing South Korea to maintain its nuclear energy share at around 30%.
South Korea currently has 24 nuclear reactors, and the current government has sought to reduce the number of operating nuclear power plants to 17 by 2034, with the aim of reducing the proportion of nuclear energy in the country's total electricity generation to 23.9% by 2030.
In 2017, the South Korean government shut down the country's oldest reactor, the Kori-1 reactor in the southern port city of Busan, after 39 years of operation. The following year, the Wolsong-1 reactor was also shut down.
Yoon Seok-yeol calls for development of advanced nuclear energy technology and promises to create 100,000 jobs
Yoon Seok-yeol called for the active promotion of advanced nuclear energy technologies such as small modular reactors and their export security. He also vowed to win orders for more than 10 nuclear power plants overseas by 2030 and create 100,000 high-quality jobs.
To provide better support for exporters, Yoon pledged to establish an inter-governmental entity to support overseas sales of nuclear power plants and to develop measures for private sector participation in the construction and operation of nuclear reactors.
"I will restore the nuclear power development ecosystem and promote safe nuclear energy technologies so that they can become a key driver of national growth," Yoon Seok-yeol wrote on his Facebook page last month.
On March 10, the former prosecutor general was confirmed as the winner by a narrow margin and will replace the progressive incumbent President Moon Jae-in. After his five-year term ends, he will move into the Blue House in May to become the new president of South Korea.
Source: Environmental Information Center (https://e-info.org.tw/node/233533)
