'Is the Continued Operation System of Nuclear Power Plants Appropriate?', Seminar Hosted by Assemblyman Park Chung-kwon

Gori Nuclear Power Plant. Photo by Yonhap News

Assemblyman Park Chung-kwon (People Power Party, proportional representation) announced that he will hold a seminar titled "Is the Nuclear Power Plant Continued Operation System Appropriate?" at 2 p.m. on the 13th in Seminar Room 1 of the National Assembly Members' Office Building.

The basic design lifespan of nuclear power plants in South Korea is 40 years of operation. Due to the Moon Jae-in administration's nuclear phase-out policy, Gori Units 2 and 3 have ceased operation upon reaching the end of their lifespan. When nuclear power plants stop operating, additional use of alternative power sources is required to meet electricity demand, and if replaced by liquefied natural gas (LNG) power generation, the cost of power generation increases, leading to higher electricity rates.

This discussion forum was organized to seek a reasonable nuclear power plant continued operation system, as various institutional improvements are needed, such as continued operation regulations, relatively short operating license periods compared to overseas (20 years in the U.S., 10 years in Korea), periodic safety evaluations, and dual review procedures for operational change approvals.

The seminar presentation will be delivered by Professor Moon Joo-hyun of the Department of Energy Engineering at Dankook University, and the chairperson will be Jeong Beom-jin, president of the Korean Nuclear Society.

Participants in the discussion include Director Kim Chang-hyun (Safety Research Institute, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Central Research Institute), Center Director Park Won-seok (KAIF Nuclear Industry Policy Research Center, former director of the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute), Director Cho Jeong-ah (Safety Policy Bureau, Nuclear Safety and Security Commission), Senior Research Fellow Park Sang-duk (Nuclear Policy Center, Seoul National University), and Director Ko Beom-gyu (Fact and Science Network).

Assemblyman Park Chung-kwon said, "In a situation where advanced strategic technologies such as artificial intelligence and semiconductors are rapidly developing worldwide and an energy security crisis is occurring simultaneously, nuclear power is the most efficient energy source," adding, "I hope constructive discussions will take place to minimize the nuclear power plant operation gap through improvements to the nuclear power plant continued operation system suitable for domestic circumstances."

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