PROSPECTS AND PROBLEMS OF NUCLEAR POWER DEVELOPMENT IN KOREA

Abstract

There has been a rapid technical progress in nuclear power in the last decade and this technical progress is more or less likely to continue in this field. The consideration of such technical progress in nuclear power suggests to us that the question of having nuclear power in Korea which has only limited resources of conventional fuels is not one of principle but one of suitable timing. Therefore, it is natural to see that the Korean government is strongly interested in constructing one or two nuclear power plants in near future. Although nuclear power plants have shown a decisive market break-through in advanced countries in the last few years, there are a number of difficulties which delay the timing of installing nuclear plants in Korea. In an analysis of prospects for nuclear power today what is required is not merely to attempt to investigate the economic feasibility of nuclear power, but rather to conduct a searching examination of the technical, social and political factors as well as economic factors which are likely to determine the timing of the introduction of nuclear power. Virtually all aspects of the industrial and political situations of countries are involved in making this decision. Moreover, the construction of a nuclear power plant requires a relatively long period. Therefore, it would be necessary to have a clear idea of the steps to be taken towards the nuclear power development. This paper is an attempt to analyze some important factors─both economic and extra-economic─related to nuclear power development in Korea.