"A Historic Opportunity for Korea"... New Nuclear Plants and Dams in the Works?

[Anchor]

Regarding the multi-quadrillion won regional investment plan unveiled by the government and major conglomerates, Kim Yong-beom, Chief of Staff for Policy at the Presidential Office, has raised the topic of expanding power and water supplies. His remarks suggest increasing the scale of national planning to build more power plants and secure water resources, which is interpreted as a proposal to construct additional nuclear power plants and dams.

Reporter Kang Cheongwan has the story.

[Reporter]

This is a post uploaded to social media by Kim Yong-beom, Chief of Staff for Policy at the Presidential Office, last night (July 2).

Regarding the three major mega-projects, including semiconductors, announced on June 29, he stated that the "structural advantage in memory," or the semiconductor boom, has "brought a historic opportunity to Korea." He proposed, "Let's build fabs, and let's expand power and water supplies."

This is interpreted as a call to build new nuclear power plants and dams, as sufficient electricity and water supply are essential for national projects aimed at creating an artificial intelligence ecosystem, such as semiconductor bases and AI data centers.

President Lee Jae-myung pledged an energy mix combining existing nuclear power and renewable energy, rather than the nuclear phase-out policy of the Moon Jae-in administration, and did not place policy emphasis on building new nuclear plants early in his term.

[President Lee Jae-myung (Press Conference on 100 Days in Office, September 11, 2025): It takes 15 years to build a nuclear power plant. And there is no place to build them.]

However, as electricity demand has surged due to the AI boom, the government decided in January to resume the construction of two new nuclear power plants that had been pushed but later halted during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.

The government may unveil plans for additional nuclear power plant construction before the regular session of the National Assembly in September.

[Kim Seong-hwan, Minister of Climate, Energy and Environment (MBC Radio, Kim Jong-bae's Focus): We need to quickly review whether we should build more nuclear power plants.]

While many ruling party lawmakers are positive, stating that "if surging energy demand cannot be met by renewable energy alone, new nuclear plants can be considered," there are also concerns regarding regional conflicts over plant sites and the risks associated with nuclear power.

The government recently announced a plan to increase the height of the Dongbok Dam in Hwasun-gun, Gwangju, by 15 meters to secure additional water for the Honam semiconductor complex, and there is speculation that plans for new dam construction, which were halted last year, could also be resumed.

Reported by Jung Sang-bo and Yoon Hyung | Video by Oh Young-taek | Graphics by Han Heung-soo | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.