Hanul nuke plant halts operation: no radiation leak

The operation of a South Korean nuclear reactor came to an automatic halt early Wednesday morning due to an unusual signal, but there was no immediate danger of a radiation leak, officials said.

The Reactor Unit 5 at the Hanul Nuclear Power Plant, located some 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul in Uljin, halted its operation at 4:17 a.m. after a warning signal came on, according to officials from the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co.

An investigation is currently under way to identify the exact problem.

"The reactor currently remains stable," an official said, adding the ongoing investigation may take up to two days.

It marked the second time since July that the same reactor stopped operation due to problems. The reactor began its commercial run in July 2004. It has a maximum generation capacity of 1 million kilowatts.

South Korea currently operates 23 nuclear reactors that supply about 30 percent of its total electricity consumption. (Yonhap)