The 41st Korea Atomic Power Annual Conference (KAP), hosted by the Korea Atomic Industrial Forum (KAIF), will be held at the Busan Exhibition & Convention Center (BEXCO) from Apr. 22 to 24.
This year's theme is "Nuclear energy for an AI-powered world." The theme was chosen to highlight nuclear power's strategic role in addressing the global challenges of the climate crisis and carbon neutrality, as well as the surging power demand driven by the spread of artificial intelligence (AI).
The keynote speeches at the Korea Atomic Power Annual Conference will be delivered by Tomas Ehler, Deputy Minister at the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade, and Mesut Uzman, president of Fermi Nuclear, which is pursuing an 11-gigawatt (GW) nuclear project in Texas.
Also attending will be Edward McGinnis, former U.S. Department of Energy Deputy Minister; Philippe Stohr, chief nuclear officer at the French Atomic Energy Commission; Petr Zavodsky, CEO of EDU II, the ordering entity for the Dukovany nuclear power plant in the Czech Republic; Frank Storniolo, director at Constellation; and James Wolf, ARC CEO. They are expected to discuss key issues in the global nuclear industry and avenues for cooperation.
Each session will delve into a range of global issues and the latest technology trends, including long-term operation of nuclear plants, carbon neutrality, AI, energy security, Small Modular Reactor (SMR), and radioactive waste. The organizers expect the event to present the future direction and role of the nuclear industry and serve as a venue to explore international cooperation plans to bolster competitiveness in the global nuclear market.
A special session has also been arranged for Southeast Asian countries seeking to introduce nuclear power. Senior government officials and experts from Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, and elsewhere will attend to discuss Asia's expanding role and rise in the global nuclear market.
In particular, this year, as Korea has secured the Pacific Basin Nuclear Conference (PBNC) for the first time in 14 years, it will be held in parallel with the Korea Atomic Power Annual Conference.
In addition, during the Korea Atomic Power Annual Conference, the "2026 Busan International Nuclear Industry Expo," co-hosted by the city of Busan and the Korea Atomic Industrial Forum (KAIF), will take place in Hall 1 of Exhibition Center 1 at the Busan Exhibition & Convention Center (BEXCO). A total of 156 nuclear-related corporations from 19 countries plan to set up 420 booths.
At this largest-ever exhibition, major domestic corporations and institutions such as Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP), KEPCO KPS, Doosan Enerbility, and the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI), as well as overseas corporations including Westinghouse of the United States, Orano and Framatome of France, AtkinsRéalis of Canada, and corporations from China, the United Kingdom, and Germany, will operate exhibition booths.
The Korea Atomic Industrial Forum (KAIF), in cooperation with the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), actively promoted overseas corporate participation to help Korean corporations develop export markets and build global supply chains. As a result, buyers from 63 companies in 18 countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, the Czech Republic, Germany, and China, will participate in the exhibition. About 430 business-to-business (B2B) meetings were prearranged through prior recruitment, which is expected to help Korean corporations expand into overseas markets.
On Apr. 24, the final day of the event, the public energy communication project "Energy Golden Bell" will be held. Now in its second edition, Energy Golden Bell was prepared to share and communicate with the public about the importance of energy, which has come to the fore amid recent developments in the Middle East. Various prizes will be awarded to the winner and the runners-up.
A Korea Atomic Industrial Forum (KAIF) official said, "The Korea Atomic Power Annual Conference has continued for 41 years as a venue for information sharing to advance the domestic and global nuclear industry and as a global platform to exchange the latest technologies and innovative ideas," adding, "This year, as we are hosting PBNC for the first time in 14 years and holding the largest-ever International Nuclear Industry Expo in parallel, we expect this conference to be an important starting point for jointly charting the future of the global nuclear industry and laying the groundwork for new cooperation."