Nuclear Safety Design Center Established

It has been found that Koreans are opposed to nuclear power generation more than any other nation. Lawmaker Byeon Jae-il, who is affiliated with the Education, Science & Technology Committee of the National Assembly, submitted a report on October 5, titled “Change in the Perception of Nuclear Power Generation since the Japanese Disaster.” According to the report submitted to the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, 66% of Koreans are against atomic power generation, approximately 10 percentage higher than in Japan. The report reveals that a great number of people are concerned about the possibility of being harmed by the nuclear accidents in Japan. “I believe that transparent administration and fail-safe measures are required more than anything else to alleviate apprehension,” said the lawmaker.

Well aware of the gravity of the circumstances, the government is wasting no time on its part. Between October 10 and 15, it held an international workshop to that end, discussing how to ensure a healthier development of the industry through communication with concerned parties around the world. In the meantime, the Nuclear Safety Committee will be established on October 28 as a presidential agency. The committee, marking the separation between an administrative body responsible for nuclear safety control regulation and that of taking charge of the use and promotion of atomic power, will refine the administrative system of Korea so that it is commensurate with the title of the world’s 6th largest nuclear industry powerhouse. The council has already established 50 improvement measures after conducting comprehensive checkups on power stations in operation. Such swift action is unprecedented.

Design Center to Seek Higher Nuclear Safety Standards

Meanwhile, KEPCO E&C launched a group dedicated to designing safer nuclear power stations, an indispensable aspect of the hazard-free employment of atomic power. The company is a subsidiary of the Korea Electric Power Corporation, designing atomic power plants and supervising their construction.

The Nuclear Safety Design Center, newly founded on October 1, will be responsible for designs and inspection work carried out in separate fields, as well as managing safety measures relating to nuclear power station design. The center consists of three teams; design inspection, safety equipment inspection and development of advanced design techniques. The center’s purpose is to check the safety of nuclear power plants built in the future as well as elevating the standards of those already in service.

“The new organization will help raise design reliability not only in nuclear power plants currently under construction in Korea, but also those in the United Arab Emirates,” said KEPCO E&C, adding, “It will be a boon to the international competitiveness of Korean atomic power stations and the country winning more projects overseas.”

On October 2, KEPCO E&C commemorated its 36th anniversary and unveiled a new corporate slogan; New Power, New Standard. According to the company’s explanation, the phrase emphasizes its will to challenge the status quo in order to become even more perfect in terms of technological strength. “Our growth momentum materialized in the UAE last year and we are witnessing it taking shape in the form of EPC-basis thermal power plant projects in Africa,” the company’s president Ahn Seung-gyu said addressing the ceremony. He continued, “Today, I'm proud to introduce the new slogan, on which we'll create new standards with our own technology and remain a reliable partner for our clients’ successful business.”

Fear, if Groundless, Should be Cast Away

It has been approximately six months since the Fukushima disaster. During the short period, the Korean people’s perception of atomic power has undergone an abrupt change, from being an inexpensive and economical power source that has realized miraculous industrial development to the main suspect of a fearful catastrophe. Korea introduced nuclear power roughly three decades ago in order to tackle energy supply problems, the very first hurdle to be cleared for economic growth, and has accumulated relevant technologies and know-how ever since. Such endeavors have led Korea to become a global leader in nuclear power plant construction and operation, as evidenced by its beating advanced nations and winning nuclear projects in the UAE worth US$40 billion. No one can overemphasize the importance of nuclear safety for Korea. It is a given fact. Opposition for the sake of opposition will bring us nowhere. We would be well advised to rid ourselves of a blind antagonism and weigh the gain against the loss based solely on hard facts.