Nuclear Renaissance

By Lee Jae-sung

With oil prices hitting a record high nearly every day, a third oil shock is emerging in the Korean economy, for which the nation is unfortunately not ready.

It is well known that South Korea has become the world's ninth biggest country in terms of energy consumption and emission of greenhouse gases, which is very shameful considering that nearly 97 percent of our energy is imported from abroad.

It is reported that as the best option against soaring oil prices and global warming, the nuclear initiative is strongly driven by the U.S. government in the areas of research and construction of nuclear power plants.

Even a few European countries are turning to nuclear from their anti-nuclear sentiment and policies in the face of recent oil price hikes.

According to the World Nuclear Association (WNA), 36 nuclear power plants are under construction with 93 in the stage of planning around world as of June 2008. A Japanese magazine recently estimated that a total of 150 nuclear units will be put on the grid in the next 20 years.

The U.S., China, Japan, Russia, Canada, France and India are the world's leading nations that are to soon build new reactors that are not only safer but also more economical in order to meet public concerns.

A U.S. presidential candidate claims that 45 nuclear plants should be built in the year 2030 for stable energy security.

The British Prime Minister asserts that the only way to put an end to addiction to oil is to construct more nuclear power plants.

The French Prime Minister states that nuclear power is the right solution to beat the current energy crisis.

It seems that the word nuclear brings horror to the public. They imagine it as a bomb killing hundreds of thousands of people. What really matters is radiation coming from nuclear material.

It is invisible, odorless, and intangible. That is why people feel frightened. Once however we have a good understanding of its property, it is no longer an object to be afraid of, and instead gives various benefits to us.

Even at this moment, all of us are being exposed to radiation from the sky, buildings, television sets, etc. Doctors in hospitals treat patients using radiation.

Nuclear power plants provide a stable supply of electricity to all of us. Thanks to this, electricity bills for homes as well as factory's remain considerably low, especially in Korea.

In addition, it must be kept in mind that one of the most efficient ways to escape from an energy crisis may be to drastically cut unnecessary consumption of energy in houses and industries.

The world's nuclear markets are dominated by the so-called BRICs countries ― Brazil, Russian, India and China. As they face drastic increases in energy demand due to expansion, an all-in nuclear energy strategy is applied.

It is expected that Korea will have an important role in the nuclear market based on its 30 years of experience in the construction and operation of nuclear plants.

What counts is energy saving and nuclear renaissance!

The writer is a deputy director at Nuclear Engineering and Technology Institute (NETEC) in Daejeon. He can be reached at jaelee@khnp.co.kr.