S. Korea to provide nuclear safety expertise to U.S.

SEOUL, Oct. 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korea said Tuesday it plans to provide
nuclear-safety expertise to the United States as Washington looks to build new
commercial reactors to cope with growing energy needs.
The move comes at the request of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC),
which is supervising efforts to build around 20 new reactors in the coming years,
according to South Korea's Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.
The U.S. has not built a nuclear reactor since the Three Mile Island accident in
1979. The lack first-hand experience has affected the NRC's personnel pool and
on-site knowhow regarding various safety procedures needed to build nuclear
facilities.
South Korea has steadily built reactors over the past three decades, and is now
capable of designing its own power units.
"Cooperation will be centered on knowhow related to safety rules and procedures,
the exchange of inspectors and on-site access," said a ministry official.
Detailed talks related to scope will be held during the annual Bilateral
Regulatory Information Exchange Meeting scheduled for Wednesday in Seoul, he
said. The two countries plan to exchange views on the safety of nuclear
facilities in the event of earthquakes, and share information on safe reactor
operations.
The U.S. is the largest user of commercial atomic energy, with 104 reactors in
operation as of late 2007. South Korea was a late-comer to nuclear energy, with
its first Gori 1 unit going on-line in 1977. Korea currently has 20 operational
reactors and plans to build eight more that will start energy production between
2010 and 2016.
On March 28, 1979, the Three Mile Island nuclear plant near Middletown,
Pennsylvania, experienced a near-total meltdown, releasing small amounts of
radioactive gases into the environment. It resulted in no deaths or injuries, but
caused the NRC to tighten its regulatory oversight.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)