The 561 member companies of the Korea Atomic Industrial Forum (KAIF) expressed support for the government policy designating small modular reactors (SMRs) as a national strategic technology.
In a statement released on the 4th, the association said the government's bold decision "will provide a solid foundation for the early establishment of the domestic SMR ecosystem and for securing a lead in the global market."
In the "2026 tax reform plan" the government recently released, the scope of support for existing national strategic technologies was expanded to the "future energy" field, and provisions were included specifying tax credit benefits for SMR-related research and development (R&D) and facility investment.
Unlike conventional large nuclear power plants, SMRs are next-generation reactors whose components are modularized and manufactured and assembled at factories. As a key energy source for achieving carbon neutrality, there is intense global competition to develop them. However, because initial technology development and large-scale facility investment are essential, the financial burden on corporations has been heavy. In response, the nuclear power industry has continued to urge the government to prepare preemptive investment incentives such as tax relief.
The association projected that this designation of a national strategic technology will serve as a catalyst to rapidly revive the domestic nuclear power equipment supply chain ecosystem, which has experienced a downturn. It explained that tax credit benefits will ease the actual funding burden on corporations and induce large-scale private investment to build manufacturing infrastructure.
Vice Chair No Baek-sik of the Nuclear Industry Association said, "We appreciate the government's policy commitment to designate and support SMRs as a national strategic technology," adding, "Using this as a catalyst, we will focus the industry's overall capabilities to secure a lead in the global SMR market."
The nuclear power industry also expressed support for the "three mega projects" the government recently released and for policies to expand the use of nuclear power. The association plans to concentrate all efforts on advancing core technologies and strengthening supply chain capabilities, based on robust cooperation with public institutions, universities, and research institutions.