On the 26th, a decision will be made regarding the dismantling approval of the Gori Unit 1 nuclear power plant. If the dismantling approval for Gori Unit 1 is granted, it is expected to boost the domestic nuclear power plant dismantling industry. Nuclear plant dismantling refers to the activities of permanently shutting down nuclear facilities, demolishing the facilities and the site, and removing radioactive contamination.
According to the nuclear sector on the 19th, the Nuclear Safety And Security Commission will hold a plenary meeting on the 26th to present the 'Gori Unit 1 dismantling approval agenda.' This comes 8 years after Gori Unit 1 was permanently shut down in June 2017. Previously, the operator Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power submitted a request for dismantling approval for Gori Unit 1 on May 14, 2021.
KHNP submitted the final dismantling plan when applying for the dismantling approval. Following this, a review of the documentation by the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety began, and the final dismantling plan was assessed over three years starting in February 2022. A KINS official noted, 'The final dismantling plan was evaluated over three years,' and added, 'Since the assessment was completed in February of this year, the results have undergone review by the Nuclear Safety Expert Committee.'
As of May this year, 214 nuclear reactors are permanently shut down in 22 countries worldwide. Of these, 25 have been dismantled. The United States has the most with 20 reactors, followed by Germany with 3, and Japan and Switzerland each with 1. There remain 189 reactors that are in a state of permanent shutdown but have not yet been dismantled, and when considering reactors that are expected to be permanently shut down in the future, the scale of the nuclear dismantling market is projected to grow even larger. The market size for nuclear dismantling is expected to reach 500 trillion won by around 2050.
Nuclear dismantling can be a stable source of revenue in the long term. The dismantling stages take approximately 15 years, including 2 years of preparation before permanent shutdown, 5 years for safety management and the removal of spent nuclear fuel, 6 years for actual dismantling, and 2 years for restoration.
The domestic nuclear power industry believes that by participating in the dismantling of Gori Unit 1 and building its track record, it can enter the overseas nuclear dismantling market. While Korea holds a competitive edge in the field of nuclear construction, it lacks experience in the dismantling market. The United States, which has dismantled 20 reactors, has two companies that specialize solely in nuclear dismantling.
The nuclear sector has accumulated technological capabilities in preparation for entering the nuclear dismantling market. KHNP has already secured 58 commercialized dismantling technologies, including the structural safety diagnosis of dismantling facilities, and the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute has developed 38 foundational technologies independently. A Nuclear Safety And Security Commission official explained, 'There may be some gaps compared to advanced technologies, but KHNP is evaluated to have all the technologies necessary for dismantling.'
The plenary meeting of the Nuclear Safety And Security Commission on the 26th is expected to look into preparations for accidents that may occur during the dismantling process. The enforcement decree of the Nuclear Safety Act sets forth technical capabilities required for the dismantling of reactor facilities, as well as the appropriateness of the dismantling plan, radiation doses generated during the dismantling process, and dose limits as criteria for dismantling approval.