With the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission approving the operating license plan for Saeul Nuclear Power Plant Unit 3 in Ulju-gun, Ulsan, the process for approving operation of a new nuclear plant in Korea has resumed after about two years. Saeul Unit 3 received its operating license nine years after construction began in 2016 and has entered the stage of preparing for commercial operation.
The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission said it reviewed and approved the operating license plan for Saeul Unit 3 at its 228th meeting held on the 30th. Earlier, at the 227th meeting on the 19th, the commission discussed the agenda but deferred a decision, saying further review was needed, and requested supplementary materials including revisions to the severe accident management plan. The commission said it approved the operating license after confirming, based on the supplemented materials, that Saeul Unit 3 meets the licensing standards.
Saeul Unit 3 is a Korean-style reactor (APR1400) that began construction in 2016, with an installed capacity of 1,400 MW. It is categorized as the first reactor to change its design to prepare for external impacts such as aircraft terrorism, and its nuclear fuel storage facility applies a 60-year storage design, three times that of existing reactors. A feature is that the storage capacity was increased to store spent nuclear fuel for the entire design life.
Saeul Unit 3 underwent a safety review by the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) from 2022 until recently. Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) applied for the operating license on Aug. 5, 2020, together with its twin reactor, Saeul Unit 4.
With this approval, Saeul Unit 3 became the first new reactor to receive operation approval in about two years since Shin Hanul Unit 2 in Sep. 2023. KHNP plans to carry out commissioning and performance verification for about six months and start commercial operation next year. The industry expects the addition of Saeul Unit 3 to contribute to improving power supply stability and securing baseload power in the process of achieving carbon neutrality.
Chairperson Choi Won-ho said, "We closely verified the safety of Saeul Unit 3 based on procedures set by law and scientific and technological grounds," and added, "We plan to thoroughly verify safety through pre-service inspections during the nuclear fuel loading and commissioning process that will take place after the operating license."