Review Committee to Decide on Wolseong MACSTOR Expansion by Next Week at the Latest

Resubmission to the Ministry of Industry Following Review Committee Decision... If Approved, Hanwoolwon Report and Gyeongju City Approval

The view of the MACSTOR installed at the Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant in Gyeongju. MACSTOR is an interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel. (Photo by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The decision on whether to expand the MACSTOR, the temporary storage facility for spent nuclear fuel at Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant in Gyeongju, will be made by next week at the latest. After the deliberation process of the 150-member citizen participation group has concluded, the Review Committee will finalize its decision and submit it to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

Kim Soyoung, Chairperson of the Spent Nuclear Fuel Management Policy Review Committee, told reporters at the Government Sejong Complex on the 20th that the Review Committee would organize its stance on the expansion of the Wolseong MACSTOR by next week at the latest.

With the three-week deliberation process of the 150-member citizen participation group completed, the Korea Management Association, the current research agency, is compiling the results and delivering them to the Gyeongju Regional Implementation Organization. The deliberation proposal has not yet been passed to the Review Committee. After discussion, the Review Committee will make a conclusion and forward it to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. If the decision favors expansion, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power will file an expansion report with Gyeongju City, which will then decide whether to approve it.

Chairperson Kim said, "We have requested Gyeongju City to submit the proposal to the Review Committee as soon as possible," adding, "There is a regular Review Committee meeting on the 22nd, and the matter will be finalized either at that meeting or by next week at the latest."

Kim So-young, Chairperson of the Spent Nuclear Fuel Management Policy Review Committee. (Photo by Spent Nuclear Fuel Management Policy Review Committee)

Chairperson Kim stated that a conclusion would be reached by August to prevent the shutdown of Wolseong Units 2 to 4 at the saturation point in March 2022. She emphasized that if opinions for and against the expansion are evenly split, minority opinions will also be fully conveyed to the government.

Additionally, discussions on mid- to long-term measures for spent nuclear fuel management are ongoing. Currently, there is no agreement on whether the scope of public opinion gathering for regional public discussion should cover a 5 km or 30 km radius around the nuclear power plant, nor on whether the Review Committee should be composed entirely of neutral members or allow participation of some stakeholders. Both decisions have been delegated to the government.

The Review Committee plans to submit recommendations to the government after hearing the citizen participation group's opinions on matters related to permanent disposal and interim storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel, principles and policy decision systems for spent nuclear fuel management, site selection procedures for management facilities, and principles and methods for supporting facility regions. The government plans to establish the second basic plan for spent nuclear fuel management within next year.

The Review Committee emphasized that the issue of expanding the Wolseong MACSTOR and the mid- to long-term spent nuclear fuel management measures are being discussed separately. Chairperson Kim explained, "The debate on the Wolseong MACSTOR expansion will not affect the mid- to long-term measures. If the issue of Wolseong MACSTOR expansion leans toward opposition, the mid- to long-term plan may be somewhat influenced, but currently, they are proceeding as separate agendas."

Meanwhile, Chairperson Kim also stated that a political decision at the government level beyond the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is necessary. She said, "Although public discussion and regulatory review on the spent nuclear fuel issue, which takes decades, are ongoing, the fact that it is included as a national agenda means it is a matter at the regime level beyond the responsible ministry," adding that the nuclear phase-out policy was also a core policy direction of the Moon Jae-in administration.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.