Seoul, (Samajweekly) South Korea has temporarily suspended the Kori-2 nuclear reactor for safety inspections and improvements required to extend its operations, its operator said on Sunday.
The No. 2 reactor at the Kori Nuclear Power Plant, located in Busan, 325 kilometers southeast of Seoul, was halted at 10 p.m. Saturday upon the expiry of its 40-year permission to operate, according to the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) Co, Yonhap News Agency reported.
The industry ministry earlier said that the suspension was inevitable as the process to extend its life span has been delayed due to the previous government’s nuclear phase-out policy.
The government began procedures to resume its operations recently. The extension process is expected to take around three to four years, but the government is seeking to move up the schedule as much as possible to June 2025 as long as safety is ensured.
Even if the process is expedited, the reactor is expected to be suspended for at least two years and two months.
The Kori-2 unit began commercial operations in April 1983 as the country’s third nuclear reactor. Currently, South Korea operates 18 out of its 25 nuclear reactors.
The Yoon Suk Yeol government reversed the nuclear phase-out policy of the previous administration and is working to expand the country’s generation of nuclear power to boost energy security and better achieve net-zero goals.
It seeks to expand nuclear power generation to 30 per cent of the country’s total energy creation by 2030, with the figure for 2021 coming to 27.4 per cent.
