Ministry of Industry: "North Korea's Nuclear Power Plant Proposal Document is an Idea Level for Inter-Korean Economic Cooperation Preparation"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy revealed that it deleted a document file containing plans to construct a nuclear power plant in North Korea during the process of obstructing the audit of Wolseong Unit 1 by the Board of Audit and Inspection. The ministry described it as "just an idea."

A ministry official explained on the 29th, "It was an internal document reviewed simply as an idea in preparation for the potential activation of inter-Korean economic cooperation in the future."

According to the prosecution, A and other ministry officials, who are accused of damaging public electronic records, violating the Board of Audit and Inspection Act, and trespassing, deleted 530 internal documents related to nuclear power just before the audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection. It is reported that many of these included materials related to North Korean nuclear power. The prosecution identified that folders named 'pohjois' (meaning 'north' in Finnish) and 'Bukwonchu' contained files on phased cooperation projects for building North Korea's power infrastructure, the current status of North Korea's power industry, and cases of German integration.

It also emerged that ministry officials reported to the Blue House that they planned to decide on the suspension of operations before the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) board, the operator of the Wolseong nuclear power plant, decided to shut down the plant. One document dated May 23, 2018, stated, "On June 15, the KHNP board is scheduled to decide on the early closure and immediate suspension of operations of Wolseong Unit 1." This was about three weeks before the KHNP board meeting.

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