Lee Hyo-sik is Finance Desk editor at The Korea Times. He manages finance-related stories on macroeconomics, banks, stocks, bonds, crypto etc. He is passionate about covering what's happening in Korea's financial industry and explaining it to both Korean and non-Korean readers. You can reach him at leehs@koreatimes.co.kr. Your insights and feedbacks are always appreciated.
2 New Wolseong reactors go online successfully
The No. 1 and No. 2 nuclear reactors at the New Weolseong Nuclear Power Plant in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province. / courtesy of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power
By Lee Hyo-sik
By Lee Hyo-sik
Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) held a ceremony Monday to mark the official operation of two reactors at its New Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province.
The ceremony, hosted by KHNP CEO Cho Seok, invited more than 1,000 guests, including Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Yoon Sang-jick and other senior government officials, as well as Gyeongju citizens.
The New Wolseong No. 1 and No. 2 reactors, each capable of generating 7.9 billion kilowatts of electricity annually, have been performing without a glitch, proving the safety and operational reliability of Korea’s nuclear reactors, according to the state-run nuclear power plant operator.
The No. 1 reactor began producing power on July 31, 2012, while the No. 2 reactor has been in commercial operation since July 24 this year. The two reactors account for 3 percent of Korea’s electricity generation capacity, enabling the nation to more effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions and deal with climate change issues on the global stage, KHNP said.
“It took more than 10 years to build and begin commercially operating the New Weolseong reactors. The facilities will significantly help meet the growing electricity demand in the region in the coming years,” KHNP CEO Cho said. “We invested 5.31 trillion won over the past ten years to build and operate the reactor. The construction project created jobs for six million people and provided a significant boost to the regional economy.”
Cho said KHNP will make more efforts to share growth with local communities and reflect opinions of local residents in its policies, pledging to do more to improve the living conditions for them.
With the two New Wolseong reactors in operation, Korea has a total of 24 reactors, which were built along its coastlines, making KHNP the world’s third-largest nuclear power operator after France’s EDF and Russia’s Rosatom. The reactors are able to produce a combined 21,716 million watts of electricity annually, accounting for 22.5 percent of the nation's entire power capacity.
The CEO was also recently elected as the chairman of the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) for two years, which will likely help raise KHNP’s global profile and make it easier for the company to export its knowhow and expertise.