By Lee Hyo-sik
Staff Reporter
Ten more nuclear power plants will be built in the country by 2030 to generate up to 41 percent of domestic electricity demand.
Alternative energy, such as wind and other renewable sources, will also meet 11 percent of demand, up from 2.4 percent.
The Ministry of Knowledge Economy Thursday unveiled these measures aimed at boosting energy self-reliance and diversifying energy sources due to difficulty securing a stable supply of crude oil and other fossil fuels amid tight global supply and soaring prices.
To better cope with rising oil and other fossil fuel prices, the ministry will build more nuclear plants to generate 29 percent of the country's electricity needs in 2020, and push it up further to 41 percent by 2030.
South Korea operates 20 nuclear power plants that produce 17.72 million kilowatts of power, or 26 percent of national electricity demand.
To meet the target, the ministry estimates the country needs at least 10 more nuclear facilities over the next 22 years.
The plan, however, will likely face strong protests from the public and environmental groups over fears of safety.
The ministry will also increase the use of wind, solar and other renewable energy sources for power generation from 2.4 percent last year to 11 percent by 2030.
A public hearing next week will gather opinions for its energy plan. The Korea Energy Committee will convene at the end of this month to finalize the plan.
A researcher at the Korea Energy Economics Institute said nuclear power is the cheapest and safest way of producing electricity. The Korean Federation for Environment Movement, however, said nuclear power is not an alternative to fossil fuels and will worsen climate change.
The federation warned that more nuclear plants would release more greenhouse gases and harm the environment.