Shin Hanul 3 and 4 nuclear power plant construction resumes

The construction of the Shin Hanul 3 and 4 nuclear power plants in Uljin County, North Gyeongsang Province, has been approved more than eight years after the initial application. The project had been suspended in October 2017 due to the previous government's 'nuclear phase-out' policy.

The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission held its 200th meeting on Thursday and approved the proposed construction of Shin-Hanul 3 and 4. The approval comes eight years and eight months after Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power applied for the construction license in January 2016. With this approval, Korea will build a new nuclear power plant eight years and three months after the June 2016 approval to construct Saeul 3 and 4 (formerly Shin-Kori 5 and 6).

Shin Hanul 3 and 4 are Advanced Power Reactor 1400 (APR1400) units, each with an electricity output of 1,400 megawatts (MW), and have the same design as the currently operating Saeul 1, 2 and Shin-Hanul 1, 2. The company applied for a construction permit in January 2016. Still, the project was suspended in October 2017 when the former Moon Jae-in administration approved the 'Energy Transition Roadmap' during a cabinet meeting, leading to the suspension of the construction permit review. The review process resumed in July 2022 when the current government announced the resumption of the construction project.


Do-Hyong Kim dodo@donga.com