Strengthening Nuclear Power Export Guarantees... Special Support of 125 Billion Won for Small and Medium Enterprises

Ministry of Trade and Trade Insurance Corporation Establish Special Support Program for Nuclear Power Export Guarantee Insurance

Government support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-sized companies engaged in nuclear power plant equipment exports will be strengthened.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation announced on the 27th that they will establish a special export guarantee insurance support program for nuclear power exports worth a total of 125 billion KRW on the 28th.

This is one of the 1 trillion KRW special financial support policies for nuclear power announced by the government at the 14th Public Discussion Forum on February 22. It is a measure to strengthen the export competitiveness of the domestic nuclear power industry, which has faced management difficulties due to sales declines caused by policies such as nuclear phase-out.

This program was prepared to address cases where companies succeed in overseas orders but fail to receive export guarantees due to insufficient credit limits. The export guarantee limit for nuclear power SMEs and mid-sized companies will be expanded up to three times compared to the existing limit, and the screening process for guarantees under 2 million USD has been simplified. Insurance premiums will also be discounted by an additional 20% to reduce the burden on companies. A special underwriting committee composed of nuclear power and financial experts has been established, and safety measures for risk management such as limiting the insured ratio (the ratio of the insurance amount to the insured value) to within 90% and setting a total limit per company (up to 15 million USD) have been put in place.

Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in the UAE. (Reference photo)

Since March last year, the government has established the "Nuclear Power Equipment Export Activation Plan," aiming to achieve early export of 5 trillion KRW worth of nuclear power equipment (from 2027 to 2024), reach 10 trillion KRW in exports by 2027, and foster 100 export SMEs and mid-sized companies. To this end, the government held an integrated briefing session on nuclear power export orders last year, set up a special nuclear power export pavilion, and launched the Nuclear Power Export First Step Program, among various support activities. This year, the government plans to actively support overseas expansion of nuclear power SMEs and mid-sized companies with high export potential by establishing the special export guarantee insurance support program and selecting additional companies to participate in the Nuclear Power Export First Step Program.

Companies wishing to issue export insurance can apply through the dedicated window of the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation starting from the 28th of this month.

Ahn Se-jin, Director of the Nuclear Power Industry Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, said, "Beyond restoring the nuclear power ecosystem, the government will diversify the export portfolio into large nuclear power plants, nuclear power equipment, and services to leap forward as a nuclear power leader. We expect that this special support program will further strengthen the export competitiveness of our nuclear power SMEs and mid-sized companies."