South Korea Starts Up a Long‑Delayed Nuclear Reactor

WNISR, 14 June 2022

On 9 June 2022, the South Korean nuclear utility Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) announced the first grid connection of Shin-Hanul-1. The nuclear plant is located in Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province, and this is the second reactor to start up in South Korea in five years.

Construction of the 1340-MW Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) of the APR-1400 design started ten years ago on 10 July 2012 and first electricity generation was originally scheduled for 2017. Thus building took twice as long as planned, and construction time accordingly features within world average of ten years.

There are now 24 reactors operating in South Korea (415 worldwide) and three remain under construction in the country (52 globally).

Units 1 (left) and 2 of the Shin Hanul power plant in Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province — Photo: Business Korea