Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) President Cho-seok

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) President Cho-seok stressed that Korean nuclear power units in operation are safe, even though public misgivings over their safety are widespread in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear accident. 

“Korean nuclear power plants (NPPs) are lower in terms of unplanned shutdowns compared to those in France and the United States. It means that Korea stands at the world’s highest levels when it comes to safety of NPPs,” KHNP President Cho said in a recent interview. 

Korean NPPs have a track record of 0.22 cases per unit in terms of unplanned shutdowns, much lower than two for France and 0.8 for the United States, Cho said. Korea’s nuclear power units are designed to endure earthquakes with a magnitude of up to 7.0.  

Given the comprehensive look at such things as economics and eco-friendliness, the operation of NPPs cannot be better if accidents can be prevented in a flawless fashion, he noted. 

KHNP President Cho is considered to be a seasoned expert in the energy field. He has assumed such positions as deputy minister in charge of energy policy planning and second vice minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. He has set safety as KHNP’s foremost management task. 

KHNP is going all-out to ensure that old nuclear power units are decommissioned safety. KHNP headquarters and its central research institute have established bodies charged with the decommissioning of Kori Nuclear Power Unit 1 to acquire technologies related to the decommissioning. 

“KHNP plans to secure all technologies necessary for the decommissioning of Kori Nuclear Power Unit 1 by 2021 before its decommissioning starts,” President Cho said. 

KHNP President Cho was inaugurated as chairman of the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) last October. KHNP will host the WANO Assembly at the Hwabaek International Convention Center (HICO) in Gyeongju. KHNP built and contributed the HICO to the Gyeongju City government. KHNP makes every effort to nurture the MICE industry in the city by attracting international events to the HICO, Cho said. 

KHNP is hitting the accelerator to tap the overseas nuclear power market. KHNP won an order from the United Arab Emirates to build four nuclear power units with homegrown nuclear power technology, joining a club of global nuclear power technology exporters. The power company is striving to target such countries as Vietnam and Egypt, which want to introduce nuclear power, as well as European countries, including the Czech Republic while trying to promote partnerships with such countries as China and Ukraine by signing technology deals. 

KHNP plans to raise the portion of overseas revenues out of sales to about 17 percent by 2030, Cho said. 

KHNP, which has seen its sales surpass the 10 trillion won mark last year, is investing much to explore the new energy industries. “We aggressively devote ourselves to creating jobs and supporting the nurturing of SMEs by proactively participating in the government’s policy to nurture new energy industries.”

KHNP plans to replace all cars for business with electric vehicles by the end of June, and the company also plans to build EV charging stations, said President Cho, adding that nine energy storage systems (ESS) will get operational by December. 

The nuclear power industry will likely resurge under the Post 2020 Climate Change Regime. (Photos:KHNP)