COUNTRY PAVILLIONS | WNE2023 South Korea: South Korea seeking new markets
South Korea is ramping up its export credentials as it embraces nuclear power at home and abroad.
There are currently 24 operational reactors in South Korea with a combined capacity of more than 23 GWe. Nuclear is a major contributor to the national electricity profile and supplies well over a quarter of the total demand. Despite the importance of nuclear to the nation, recent years have been turbulent with a policy having been introduced that would see nuclear power phased out. This policy was scrapped last year following the election of President Yoon Suk-yeol and was replaced with a plan to reach a 30% nuclear
contribution to the electricity mix by 2030 instead. Several reactors are under construction and in September Korea
Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) completed fuel loading of its latest nuclear station, the 1,400 unit 2 of MWe Shin Hanul nuclear power plant. Shin Hanul 2 has already received an operating permit from the Nuclear Safety & Security Commission and commercial operation is scheduled to begin after approximately six months of testing. Shin Hanul 2 features an APR1400 PWR and similar units are also operating at Saeul units 1 and 2 and unit 1 of Shin Hanul. The 1350 MWe Shin Hanul 1 was commissioned last year. A further two APR1400 units are under construction at Saeul Units 3 and 4. The APR1400, designed by Korea Engineering Company, has a 60-year design life and is an evolution of the 995 MWe OPR1000 design, 12 of which have been constructed in South Korea. The pledge to boost nuclear investment will not only support
efforts to curb carbon emissions but is also likely to boost nuclear exports. South Korea is prominent among nuclear energy countries, and is building its nuclear exports industry. For instance the APR 1400 reactors are similar to those that have been exported to the UAE for the Barakah power plant. The three other units of four planned at Barakah are also currently under construction. Recently, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE)
Above: The Shin Hanul site features four units of the domestic APR1400 design
and Kepco Engineering & Construction Company received approval in principle (AIP) or a floating offshore nuclear power barge. The design involves a 240 MW SMR-powered ship, featuring four 60 MW units. The barge is intended to serve as offshore power generation for remote communities and island electrification.
Spain: Spain steps back
Spain has uprated and extended the life of its reactor fleet but is still expected to withdraw from nuclear generation by 2035.
Spain currently has seven operating nuclear reactors generating 7,123 MWe which collectively supply about a fifth of its electricity. The Spanish reactor fleet is noted for uprating capacity over the course of their reactor lifetimes and this programme has added some 810 MWe, equivalent to a medium-sized reactor. The programme has added more than 10% to the national nuclear capacity through various upgrades. Almaraz units 1 and 2 were boosted by more than 5% while Cofrentes gained 2% in 1988, another 2.2% in 1998, 5.6% in 2002 and a further 1.9% in 2003. These measures take the plant output to 112% of its original rated capacity. Ascó 1 and 2 and Vandellós 2 have also been refurbished and up-rated over the last decade. The operating nuclear units are all 30+ years old and a safety
review is conducted every 10 years when a licence renewal is typically approved for a further decade. Licence renewal for Almaraz units 1 and 2 was granted in May
2020. A further 10-year life extension for Vandellos unit 2 was also approved in July 2020 and in early 2021 Cofrentes licence was extended to 2030. Licence renewals for Asco units 1 and 2 were also granted in 2021, bringing their operations to 2030 and 2031, respectively, while a further licence renewal is also expected for the Trillo plant.
However, in 2019 a national energy and climate plan was agreed between the government, nuclear operators and the national decommissioning and nuclear waste agency Empresa Nacional de Residuos Radiactivos SA (Enresa), that establishes a complete phaseout of nuclear power by 2035. Three nuclear plants have already been shutdown – Vandellós
I in 1990, José Cabrera in 2006 and Santa María de GaroĊa in 2013 – and earlier this year the Ministry for the Ecological Transition & Demographic Challenge authorised the start of the dismantling at the 446 MWe BWR Santa María de Garoña as well as the transfer of ownership to Enresa. The work will last until 2033. More recently, in September, Enresa announced that it has completed restoration work at the José Cabrera site following demolition of the containment building. The first reactor to be fully dismantled in Spain, the 142 MWe PWR was also the first to begin operation in Spain in 1968.
Above: The two-unit Almaraz nuclear power plant in Spain
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