Government to Export Nuclear Power Technology to Saudi Arabia... Will the '12 Trillion' Jackpot Hit?

Export of Research Reactor Technology to Saudi Arabia... Support for Regulatory Development
'12 Trillion' Nuclear Power Export Green Light... Saudi Inquiry to Korea in May
Refusal of Nuclear Inspection is a Variable... Need to Resolve US Atomic Energy Act Export Regulations

President Yoon Suk-yeol Meets with Saudi Foreign Minister
(Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Seo Myeong-gon = On the morning of the 20th, President Yoon Suk-yeol is meeting with Faisal bin Farhan, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister, at the Yongsan Presidential Office building in Seoul. 2022.7.20 [Provided by the Presidential Office, resale and DB prohibited]
Photo by Seo Myeong-gon
(End)

＜Copyright(c) Yonhap News Agency, unauthorized reproduction and redistribution prohibited＞

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Lee Jun-hyung] The government is exporting research reactor-related technology to Saudi Arabia. The government plans to strengthen nuclear power cooperation with Saudi Arabia through this export. Expectations are growing that Korea could win the contract for Saudi Arabia's 12 trillion won-scale nuclear power plant construction project.

According to the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission on the 26th, the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) recently participated in and signed a contract for the bid announced by the Saudi Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRRC) for the "Development of Regulatory Procedures and Technical Support Project for Research Reactors." The project scale is 2.32 million USD (about 3 billion KRW). KINS started the project on the same day.

The technology KINS is exporting is related to research reactors. Since November 2018, Saudi Arabia has been constructing a 30KW-class research reactor designed by the Argentine state-owned company INVAP. KINS supports the development of licensing guidelines and regulatory procedures for commissioning and operational stages of the research reactor Saudi Arabia is building. The development of regulatory procedures related to nuclear fuel import/export, transportation, and shipment is jointly promoted with the Korea Institute of Nuclear Nonproliferation and Control (KINAC).

KINS also supports the training of nuclear power regulatory personnel in Saudi Arabia. KINS plans to dispatch internal personnel to Saudi Arabia to conduct nuclear power regulatory education. A KINS official said, "NRRC officials also received regulatory training in Korea in 2019," adding, "We plan to conduct education in the form of talent exchange over the next two years."

Through this export, nuclear power cooperation with Saudi Arabia is expected to be further strengthened. A government official said, "This project is based on the memorandum of understanding signed between the NSSC and the Saudi regulatory agency in 2016," adding, "We expect nuclear safety cooperation with Saudi Arabia to become even closer in the future."

Biden Meeting with Saudi Crown Prince
(Jeddah AFP=Yonhap News) On the 15th (local time), U.S. President Joe Biden, visiting Saudi Arabia, held talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at Al Salam Palace in Jeddah on the Red Sea coast. [Provided by the Saudi Royal Family. Marketing and advertising prohibited] 2022.7.17
jsmoon@yna.co.kr
(End)

＜Copyright (c) Yonhap News Agency, Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution prohibited＞

There is also analysis that KINS's export of regulatory technology could increase Korea's chances of winning the Saudi nuclear power plant contract. Earlier, Saudi Arabia sent a request for participation in bidding to four countries including Korea, France, China, and Russia in May, indicating its intention to construct a nuclear power plant worth 12 trillion won. Jeong Dong-wook, president of the Korean Nuclear Society, said, "Saudi Arabia's intention to introduce nuclear power is certain," adding, "It is a positive signal that Korea's licensing system is being exported to Saudi Arabia ahead of nuclear power plant construction."

The problem is that Saudi Arabia is not a signatory to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Additional Protocol. Saudi Arabia refuses to join the IAEA Additional Protocol, which stipulates inspection rights for nuclear facilities, to check Iran's nuclear development. Korea has a policy of not exporting nuclear power plants to countries that are not signatories to the IAEA Additional Protocol. This principle was reaffirmed once again through the joint statement of the Korea-US summit in May.

There are also calls for the government to actively utilize the Korea-US nuclear alliance. This is because resolving the IAEA Additional Protocol issue, the biggest obstacle to exporting nuclear power plants to Saudi Arabia, is practically in the hands of the United States. The Korean-type nuclear power plant (APR-1400) was developed with US-origin technology and is subject to export regulations under Section 123 of the US Atomic Energy Act.

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