Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) Yoon Sang-jick and Korea Electric Power Corp. 

(KEPCO) President Cho Hwan-eik pose for a group photo for the camera as they make an inspection tour of 

the construction site of the Barakah nuclear power units in the United Arab Emirates on Jan. 24. 

Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) Yoon Sang-jick and Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) President Cho Hwan-eik made an inspection tour of the construction site of the Barakah nuclear power units in the United Arab Emirates, Korea’s first overseas nuclear power project, on Jan. 24.

They visited the construction site of the main office of the UAE’s first nuclear power unit and inspected the overall progress of the project and gave words of encouragement to the site crew. 

MOTIE Minister Yoon looks around the construction site of the UAE 

nuclear power project. (photos: courtesy of MOTIE, article by S. Y. Kim) 

MOTIE Minister Yoon and KEPCO President Cho reconfirmed their determination to make the nuclear power project in the UAE a success and seize it as an opportunity to resurge Korea’s nuclear power industry by shedding new light on the significance of the project and its spillover effects. 

The UAE project is proceeding smoothly with power unit one scheduled to be completed by May 2017. Concrete placement began in July 2012 as part of work on the construction of a structure that will accommodate the reactor, and installation of major systems and equipment began late last year, with the reactor and other key systems slated for installation this year.

This is a mega-project KEPCO landed from the UAE’s Emirates Nuclear Energy Corp. (ENEC) on Dec. 27, 2009. It calls for the construction of four nuclear power units, each adopting Korea’s homegrown Advanced Power Reactor (APR) 1400 in the Bakarah area some 270 km west of Abu Dhabi. 

Korea’s first overseas nuclear power project will likely create huge spillover effects for the construction, equipment manufacturing, design, technology development, and other ancillary industries related to the construction of nuclear power units, thus bringing great benefits to the national economy, industry analysts said. 

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KEPCO joined forces in cashing in on the UAE project with the goal of Korea’s rising to a nuclear power technology export powerhouse. To this end, they are devoting themselves to securing experienced nuclear power manpower, stepping up marketing activities and developing diverse educational programs to enhance Korea’s standing in the international nuclear power market. 

Minister Yoon met with Chairman Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak of the Executive Affairs Authority of the Government of Abu Dhabi on Jan. 23 and conveyed the Korean government’s strong will to successfully build the UAE nuclear power units.

Minister Yoon told Chairman Khaldoon that Korea will take steps to secure the manpower with the right stuff required for the operation of the four nuclear power units, to be dedicated one by one from 2017.