This photograph reveals the Saeul-3 and Saeul-4 reactors within the southeastern port metropolis of Ulsan, Dec. 30, 2025. Courtesy of the Nuclear Security and Safety Fee
The state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Energy Co. (KHNP) plans to spice up the usage of its nuclear energy crops to the very best degree in 15 years as a part of efforts to decrease electrical energy charges and reply to rising energy demand, the local weather ministry mentioned Tuesday.
The KHNP informed the ministry in a coverage briefing that it’s going to improve the nuclear crops’ capability issue, which signifies the proportion of whole capability in precise use, to 89 % this yr, up 4.4 share factors from 84.6 % in 2025.
The 2026 goal is the very best determine since 2011, when the utilization charge stood at 90.7 %.
The KHNP mentioned nuclear energy generally is a supplementary supply to renewable vitality, which reveals intermittency, and assist guarantee a secure provide of electrical energy amid a rising demand from the unreal intelligence and semiconductor sectors.
Nuclear energy can even contribute to the decreasing of electrical energy charges, it added.
The corporate mentioned it plans to renew operation of the Kori-2 nuclear reactor in March, following the nuclear security watchdog’s latest approval of a 10-year life extension of the reactor, noting it’s going to push for lifespan extension of different nuclear reactors as properly.
Relating to the development of latest crops, the local weather ministry mentioned it’s going to conduct a public opinion survey on the matter this week.
As a part of efforts to chop prices and enhance effectivity, the Korea Electrical Energy Corp. (KEPCO) is constructing the so-called “vitality expressway” alongside the west coast, which is able to later be expanded to the remainder of the nation.
The “vitality expressway” mission is aimed toward constructing high-voltage direct present (HVDC) infrastructure throughout the nation. HVDC is a next-generation energy expertise that lowers the inefficiency of long-distance energy transmissions and helps with the combination of renewable vitality from totally different sources.
