[Report] "No Anti-Nuclear Placards"... Visiting the Shin Hanul Units 3 and 4 Site Resuming Construction After 5 Years

Scheduled Construction Start After Building Permit in First Half of This Year
Site Acquisition Procedures Progress Smoothly with Resident Cooperation
Shin Hanul Unit 2 to Operate Normally from the 5th

Exterior view of Shin Hanul Nuclear Power Plant Unit 2. It began commercial operation on April 5. Photo by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power

On the 11th, at the construction site of Shinhanul Units 3 and 4 near Deokcheon-ri, Buk-myeon, Uljin-gun, Gyeongbuk Province, earthworks were in full swing, transporting hundreds of thousands of tons of soil piled up at the site where the nuclear power plant will be built. In the center of the construction site, red and blue flags were planted side by side at intervals of 154 meters. These mark the locations where the reactors for Shinhanul Units 3 and 4 will be installed. Through geological and drilling surveys, solid bedrock capable of withstanding earthquakes was selected. The nuclear power plant will be constructed by excavating the solid bedrock, densely installing rebar, and pouring concrete.

Shinhanul Units 3 and 4 were promoted after being included in the 4th Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand in December 2008, but the plan was canceled in 2017 with the Moon Jae-in administration's nuclear phase-out policy. However, after the inauguration of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, the plan was reinstated in the 10th Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand announced in 2023, allowing construction to resume after five years.

In the Buk-myeon area of Uljin-gun, where the Shinhanul nuclear power plant is located, there were no placards (banners) from anti-nuclear groups commonly seen near nuclear power plants. Son Bong-soon, Director of External Cooperation at Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power’s Hanul Nuclear Power Headquarters, said, "Residents actually wanted the resumption of construction for Shinhanul Units 3 and 4," adding, "The claims of anti-nuclear groups do not resonate here."

Panoramic view of Shin Hanul Units 3 and 4 construction site. Photo by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power

The reason residents are supportive of the new nuclear power plant is due to their experience with the existing plants operated in Uljin-gun, including Shinhanul Units 1 and 2, which have been operational since 2022. Residents have felt the increase in employment and the revitalization of the local economy since the nuclear power plant was established. Approximately 10 trillion won was invested in the construction of Shinhanul Units 1 and 2, and 11.7 trillion won is planned for Units 3 and 4.

Legal Support Funds of 2 Trillion Won Provided to the Region... Land Acquisition Progressing Smoothly

Shinhanul Units 1 and 2 have generated a cumulative employment effect of 5,318,000 people to date. The hiring rate of local residents among construction personnel is 26%, and the use rate of local equipment is 63%.

Moreover, during the 60-year operation period of Shinhanul Units 1 and 2, KHNP plans to provide a total of 2.0645 trillion won in legal support funds to the region, including special support project funds, basic support project funds, operator support project funds, and local resource facility taxes. During the construction period alone, 544.5 billion won was spent on regional support projects.

The same applies to the upcoming Shinhanul Units 3 and 4. It is estimated that these units will create 7.22 million jobs and provide 2.1204 trillion won in legal support funds.

Along with economic support, efforts were made to reassure residents concerned about safety. The Hanul Nuclear Power Headquarters frequently invited village residents to show them the safe operation of the nuclear power plant and to clear up misunderstandings.

The containment building wall thickness of Shinhanul Units 1 and 2 is 122 cm. In places requiring additional reinforcement, such as the main steam pipes, the thickness reaches up to 197 cm. In an actual experiment in the United States, a 27-ton phantom aircraft was crashed at a speed of 800 km/h against a concrete wall with the same conditions as the nuclear power plant’s outer wall. The aircraft was destroyed beyond recognition, but the concrete wall was damaged by only about 5 cm.

Thanks to these efforts, land acquisition for the construction of Shinhanul Units 3 and 4 is progressing smoothly with the cooperation of residents. Of the total required land of 1,361,250 cubic meters (about 410,000 pyeong), 924,361 cubic meters (about 280,000 pyeong) have been secured. KHNP is working on purchasing nearby farmland (Naepyeongdeul) and land in Gomok-ri village to secure the nuclear power plant restricted area.

Shinhanul Units 3 and 4 signed a main equipment construction contract last November with a consortium of Hyundai Engineering & Construction, Doosan Enerbility, and POSCO E&C, but construction has not started yet as they have not received construction approval from the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission. Approval is expected in the first half of this year.

Shinhanul Unit 2 Commenced Commercial Operation on the 5th... Operating at 100% Output

Like Units 1 and 2 operating right next door, Shinhanul Units 3 and 4 will use APR1400 reactors made entirely with domestic technology. Shinhanul Unit 2 completed test operations and began commercial operation on the 5th.

On that day, from the guest room in the auxiliary building of Shinhanul Unit 2, the main control room (MCR) could be seen through the glass window. The main control room, which functions as the brain of the nuclear power plant, is strictly controlled to prevent public access. The nuclear power plant is a 'Category A' national security facility, requiring thorough identity verification, but entry to the main control room was prohibited.

Interior view of Shin Hanul Unit 2 Main Control Room (MCR). Photo by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power

The door to the main control room is 6.7 cm thick and weighs 346 kg. It is made as a bulletproof and fireproof door to protect the nuclear power plant safely even in emergency situations. Inside the 278.7 square meter (about 84.3 pyeong) main control room, five KHNP employees were monitoring the reactor and nuclear power plant equipment operation status in real time.

On the large display panel facing the main control room, the number 1498 megawatts (MW) was shown, indicating the current output. This demonstrated that the APR1400, with a generation capacity of 1400 MW, was operating perfectly. Next to it was an analog safety control panel that serves as a backup in case the digital large display panel malfunctions.

After leaving the main control room, wearing a safety helmet, knee pads, and safety shoes, we visited the Turbine Generator Building (TGB), where the turbines and generators are located. This is the place where high-temperature, high-pressure steam from the reactor is used to turn turbines and generate actual electricity.

Interior view of the turbine room of Shin Hanul Nuclear Power Plant Unit 2. Photo by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co.

The noise from the turbine rotating at a speed of 1800 revolutions per minute (rpm) was so loud that it was difficult to hear the person next to you. The room was hot due to the heat from the turbine. The thermometer indicated 32 degrees Celsius. The facility, where the high-pressure turbine, low-pressure turbine, and generator are connected in series, was 100 meters long.

The 24,000 volts (24 kV) electricity produced by the generator is stepped up to 765 kV at the surrounding transformer outside the building and supplied to the metropolitan area via the Shintaebaek Substation and Singapyeong Substation. The electricity generated by Shinhanul Units 1 and 2 accounts for 47% of the total annual consumption in Gyeongsangbuk-do and 4% of the national annual electricity demand.

Since nuclear power plants use seawater as a coolant, they are located by the sea, and when typhoons approach, the high-voltage transformers exposed outside can suffer salt damage. Saltwater splashing onto the transformers causes flashover phenomena.

In fact, when Typhoon Maysak hit in September 2020, Kori Unit 3 suffered damage. Since then, transformers at domestic nuclear power plants have been sealed to minimize typhoon damage by enclosing the exposed conductor parts.

Hanul Nuclear Power Plant’s Wet Storage Facility to Reach Capacity by 2031... Passage of High-Level Radioactive Waste Special Act Remains a Challenge

On that day, entering the room where the spent fuel pool could be observed, the wet storage facility where used fuel rods are immersed in a large pool to cool down was visible. Each fuel rod contains 387 pellets (uranium raw material) densely packed. A bundle of 236 such fuel rods is called an assembly. One assembly is about 4 meters in size and weighs 640 kg.

The entire wet storage facility at Hanul Nuclear Power Headquarters is expected to be completely saturated by 2031. Other sites are also expected to reach saturation sequentially, starting with Hanbit Nuclear Power Plant in 2030. Spent nuclear fuel cooled in wet storage must be stored temporarily in dry storage facilities on-site before being moved to permanent disposal facilities off-site. Without temporary dry storage or permanent disposal sites, spent nuclear fuel cannot be stored any longer, forcing nuclear power plants to cease operation.

Accordingly, the High-Level Radioactive Waste Special Act, which includes procedures for handling high-level radioactive waste and resident support measures, was discussed in the 21st National Assembly but has not passed due to divided opinions. The nuclear industry hopes the High-Level Special Act will be passed before the end of the 21st National Assembly’s term on May 29.