By Kim Tae-gyu
Staff Reporter

Korean companies' nuclear power plant deal with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is expected to cast a silver lining to the otherwise gloomy job markets of Asia's fourth-largest economy.

According to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Sunday, the country's five corporations associated with nuclear power generation will need to recruit up to 2,648 employees by next year.

``The country will continue to build nuclear power stations over the coming years as well as continuing research on the technologies, which require specialists,'' said an official at the ministry that takes charge of the nuclear industries.

``In particular, the nuclear energy contract of Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) is expected to boost the job markets for nuclear experts and related staff members.''

Late last month, the Korean consortium headed by KEPCO beat its rivals, including GE, Hitachi and Areva, to receive a $20 billion contract to build four nuclear reactors in the UAE.

The contract, which is already the largest-ever energy deal in the Middle East region, can double in value should the initial projects lead to agreements to construct more nuclear power plants.

Such domestic builders as Hyundai Engineering & Construction, Samsung C&T Corp. and Doosan Heavy Industries participated in the consortium to make Korea the sixth nation to export nuclear plants.

Because the private constructors will also need to hire to fulfill the mega construction jobs, the overall number of jobs generated by the deal is expected to be much bigger in years to come.

The government officially predicts that the construction works of the nuclear power plants will create more than 100,000 jobs over the next 10 years.

This contrasts to the lackluster job market of Korea Inc., which is expected to suffer in the first few months of this year as the government temporarily terminates its schemes of offering public works in January and February.

Private companies seem to be ready to fire their staff members rather than hire new ones for the time being in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.

For example, the country's largest fixed-line operator KT, the nation's No. 1 insurer Samsung Life Insurance and even the state-backed Industrial Bank of Korea plan to reduce their payrolls.

Adding more to the woes, half a million people are set to pour into the job market in February after graduating from colleges and high schools.

``One of the biggest concerns for the country is the job market. Even though the economy has shown signs of rebounding of late, the recovery of the employment has been lethargic,'' a Seoul analyst said.

``Lest the job market bounces back, the full-fledged economic recovery cannot be attained. In this climate, the nuclear power plant deal offers really good news for the country.''

voc200@koreatimes.co.kr