Minister Kim Seong-hwan, the nominee for the Ministry of Environment, said on the 15th, "Mixing renewable energy and nuclear power appropriately should be the future energy policy of Korea."
On the same day, Kim noted at a confirmation hearing held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, "I have never recently claimed to phase out nuclear power."
Kim remarked, "The Fukushima nuclear accident occurred in 2011 during my time as the head of Nowon District, and the world was astonished at that time," adding, "Since then, as the climate crisis has worsened, there has been a shift in policy to actively utilize nuclear power."
He emphasized, "Transitioning to a decarbonized society is very important, but renewable energy has the downside of intermittency, and while nuclear power is a very important energy source, there is the issue of its risks." He continued, "To prevent the climate crisis, we must transition to a decarbonized society at a very fast pace by enhancing the safety of nuclear power and reducing the intermittency of renewable energy."
Kim stated, "The Lee Jae-myung government has allowed continuous operation of nuclear plants whose design lifespan has ended, provided their safety is guaranteed," and added, "The 11th Basic Plan for Power Supply and Demand (Electricity Plan) also confirmed the construction of two additional nuclear plants during the previous administration."
He also said, "I will do my best to foster a decarbonized industrial sector, including energy storage systems (ESS), heat pumps, solar power, and wind power, while harmonizing (nuclear power and renewable energy) well."
He further commented, "The Yoon Suk-yeol government emphasized nuclear power significantly, but if they were to increase the share of nuclear power, they should have decreased the share of coal or liquefied natural gas (LNG)." He noted, "By increasing nuclear power and significantly decreasing the share of renewable energy, the transition to a decarbonized society has been greatly delayed."
Kim expressed, "Currently, Korea still has a share of renewable energy that is not even 10%, and if we do not raise this quickly, the transition to a decarbonized society will be very difficult," adding, "The Lee Jae-myung government must achieve the greenhouse gas reduction target by 2030, and how quickly we raise renewable energy by then is a very significant task."