More Chances
Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) announced on October 9 that the standard design of the EU-APR was approved by the European Utility Requirements (EUR). The EU-APR is a version of the state-run nuclear operator’s APR 1400 reactor modified for export to Europe.
The approval means that South Korea’s nuclear power plants can be exported to more countries than before. Potential destinations include the Czech Republic, Britain, Sweden and Poland, which are planning to replace old nuclear power plants with new ones, and the countries requiring the EUR certification such as South Africa and Egypt.
The biggest difference between EU-APR and APR 1400 lies in emergency response. In the event of nuclear reactor core meltdown, the ARP 1400 responds by using a coolant outside the reactor vessel. In contrast, the EU-APR cools the molten core material inside the reactor building. The EUR certification is provided for economically-qualified and safety-ensured nuclear power plants by a group of 14 nuclear power plant operators in 12 European countries.
KHNP, Doosan Heavy Industries, Korea Nuclear Fuel and KEPCO Engineering & Construction Company applied for the certification in December 2011 and then a preliminary evaluation was conducted for two years. During the following examination that started in November 2015, they submitted 620 different technical documents and answered to 800 or so questions to meet about 4,500 requirements in 20 fields.