Temporary Nuclear Waste Storage Facility with Expansion Potential... Implying Practically 'Indefinite Use'

KHNP to Promote Construction of Dry Storage Facilities at 3 Nuclear Power Headquarters
Cost Recalculation Possible Due to Continued Operation, etc.
Concerns That 'Temporary' Facilities May Become Permanent Disposal Sites

A panoramic view of Hanul Nuclear Power Plant located in Uljin, Gyeongbuk.
[Photo by Asia Economy DB]

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) is set to present the ‘Basic Plan for the Construction of Dry Storage Facilities for Spent Nuclear Fuel at Kori (Draft)’ to its board of directors on the 28th. The core of this plan is that it leaves open the possibility of new construction and expansion of dry storage facilities. The basic plan explicitly states that ‘recalculation of costs is necessary in case of continued operation, new nuclear power plant construction, or delays in the operation of interim storage facilities.’ This means that if the amount of spent nuclear fuel increases due to continued operation of nuclear power plants or if the establishment of interim storage facilities is delayed, there is room to expand the newly built dry storage facilities at any time.

This is why there are concerns that dry storage facilities might effectively be used as permanent disposal facilities. According to the government roadmap, the target year for securing permanent disposal facilities for high-level radioactive waste is 2060. Considering that KHNP plans to start construction of the dry storage facility at Kori Nuclear Power Plant in 2027 and operate it from 2030, high-level radioactive waste will need to be stored in dry storage facilities for at least 30 years. The situation is similar for the dry storage facilities at Hanbit and Hanul Nuclear Power Plants, scheduled to begin operation in 2031.

‘Temporary Facilities’ Only... Slow Progress in Securing Disposal Sites

The problem is that dry storage facilities are merely ‘temporary’ storage for spent nuclear fuel discharged after nuclear power plant operation. Dry storage facilities such as MACSTOR and canisters have limited capacity to store spent nuclear fuel and are constructed exposed above ground, making the storage method incomplete. Being built above ground makes them vulnerable to natural disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis, as well as military attacks. Therefore, to completely dispose of spent nuclear fuel, it must be transferred from dry storage facilities to interim storage facilities and finally stored in permanent disposal facilities (waste disposal sites).

The best solution is to build disposal sites, but the process is challenging from the site selection stage. The government initially sought disposal sites since the 1980s but faced opposition from local residents and civic groups, resulting in little progress until recently. Consequently, the domestic nuclear industry has relied on temporary storage facilities akin to makeshift restrooms for nearly 45 years since the first nuclear power plant, Kori Unit 1, began operation in 1978.

Concerns are growing as the government estimates that the period for establishing disposal sites is likely to be extended. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the competent authority, expects that it will take at least 37 years from the start of securing disposal sites to the completion of permanent disposal facilities. Specifically, permanent disposal facilities can only begin construction 27 years after site selection (13 years) and underground research facility construction and demonstration research (14 years). However, since disposal sites are highly contentious issues with strong local opposition and potential political controversy, it is widely expected that the government will not complete site selection within 13 years.

Critical Point from 2031... KHNP’s Last-Resort Measures

KHNP has ultimately devised a last-resort plan by leaving open the possibility of new construction and expansion of dry storage facilities. This urgency arises from the fact that if dry storage facilities are not secured in time, nuclear power plants will have to be sequentially shut down starting in 2031. As of the end of last month, the saturation rates of wet storage pools inside the plants for spent nuclear fuel at Kori and Hanbit Nuclear Power Plants are 85.9% and 75.7%, respectively, both reaching their limits by 2031. The following year, the saturation rate at Hanul Nuclear Power Plant (82%) will also reach 100%.

Given this situation, calls for the government to accelerate securing disposal sites are growing louder. The background to KHNP’s last-resort measures lies in the political sensitivity of disposal site construction, which each administration has avoided like a ‘hot potato.’ Especially after the inauguration of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, with increased nuclear power plant operation rates and the resumption of construction of Shin-Hanul Units 3 and 4, the amount of spent nuclear fuel discharged is bound to increase steadily. This means the saturation points for Kori and Hanbit Nuclear Power Plants, scheduled for 2031, could be reached earlier than expected.

There is also a view that KHNP must secure procedural legitimacy such as social consensus during the construction of dry storage facilities. While the disposal of spent nuclear fuel is an urgent issue, forcibly constructing dry storage facilities without consensus from local residents could cause backlash. Under current law, dry storage facilities can be constructed without public discussion, but this could increase local opposition. Accordingly, Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant conducted public opinion surveys among local residents during the MACSTOR expansion process last year as part of public engagement efforts.

Cost burden is another issue. KHNP creates a ‘Radioactive Waste Management Fund’ by paying a certain management fee each time spent nuclear fuel is discharged. The management fees imposed on KHNP over the past 10 years amount to approximately 6.13 trillion won, which will be used for future disposal site construction and other purposes. Although the fund’s goal is waste management, the construction costs of dry storage facilities, which run into trillions of won, and compensation to local communities must be covered entirely by KHNP’s own budget. It is reported that the Government Legal Affairs Corporation under the Ministry of Justice recently provided legal advice to KHNP, suggesting that the construction costs of dry storage facilities could constitute a ‘double burden.’

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