Power crisis looms as four nuclear reactors could be shut down

Panoramic view of Hanul Nuclear Power Plant Units 3(left) and 4. [Courtesy of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co.]

While the world is racing to secure nuclear power, South Korea is facing a crisis as four of its existing nuclear power plants are expected to cease operations from 2025 onwards.

Nuclear power is essential for reducing carbon emissions and providing stable electricity supplies for advanced industries, including artificial intelligence (AI).

According to Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) on Monday, the Kori-2 nuclear reactor has already been idle since April 2023 after reaching the end of its initial design life of 40 years, with a review to determine whether it can operate for an additional 10 years pending.

The Kori-3 unit will also stop operations in September 2024, the Kori-4 unit will halt in August 2025, and the Hanbit-1 unit in December 2024, according to the country’s state-run nuclear power agency.

Nuclear power plants are required to undergo planned preventive maintenance every 18 months, a process that takes two to three months. Two to four reactors are usually shut down for preventive maintenance, but up to eight reactors could be shut down simultaneously at a point in 2025.

An industry insider expressed concern that “while the United States is discussing extending the operation of nuclear plants to 80 or even 100 years, our country has only seen two cases of license extensions, and those are both for a mere 10 years.”

The insider highlighted that safely extending the operation of nuclear plants would not only help reduce carbon emissions but also save astronomical costs.

More than half of the 438 operational nuclear reactors worldwide, or 239 reactors, were authorized to continue operating as of the end of 2023 and of these, 188 are still in extended operation. The United States granted six reactors that reached the end of their 40-year design life two 20-year extensions, thus allowing them to operate for a total of 80 years.

In Korea, the Kori-1 and Wolsong-1 units are the only two reactors to be licensed for continued operation. Kori-1 unit completed its 10-year extended operation, but the Wolsong-1 unit shut down prematurely in December 2019 during the Moon Jae-in administration. None of the 26 operational nuclear reactors in the country are currently under extended operation.

“Ten nuclear reactors with a combined capacity of 8.45 gigawatts (GW) could cease operations by 2030 as their initial licenses expire,” a KHNP official said. “If none of them receive license extensions, more than 40 GW of renewable energy installations, including solar power, would be needed to replace them.”

To meet this demand with solar power alone would require an area 120 to 160 times the size of Yeouido, southwest Seoul, a feat that experts widely view as impractical.