Green Light for Korea's Nuclear Plant Exports

Chung Jae-hoon (right), president of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., receives a design certificate on the APR-1400 reactor from Annie Caputo, a member of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), at the commission’s office in Washington, D.C. on Aug. 26 (local time).

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) announced on Aug. 27 that it has received a design certificate on the APR-1400 Nuclear Reactor from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on Aug. 26 (local time).

The certification, valid for 15 years, states that the NRC finds the design of the Korean-type nuclear reactor fully acceptable for U.S. use.

The APR-1400 has become the first non-U.S. nuclear reactor certified by the NRC. This means that the safety and reliability of the Korean-type nuclear reactor was duly recognized in the United States, which has the most stringent nuclear reactor regulations. The certification paves the way for Korea to export nuclear power plants based on the APR-1400.

The APR-1400 obtained the Standard Design Approval (SDA) from the NRC in September last year. The NRC then certified the design on April 30 this year. It took 120 days for the NRC’s rule certifying the APR-1400 to be listed in the appendix of the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations.

In addition, the APR-1400 won European design certification in October last year.

The APR-1400 is a nuclear reactor exported to the United Arab Emirates. In Korea, it is used for the four units of Shin-Kori Nuclear Power Plant and the two units of Shin Hanul Nulcear Power Plants.

KHNP applied for the NRC certification in December 2014.

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