[Exclusive] National Strategic Technologies to Expand to Include Renewable Energy?

Reorganization of the 12 National Strategic Technologies Planned This Year
Attention on the Fate of "Nuclear Power" Raised by President Lee

The government plans to newly include renewable energy in the list of national strategic technologies. In contrast, the future of next-generation nuclear power, which has been part of the strategic technologies, has become uncertain, sparking controversy.

According to the scientific community and related industries on September 19, Shin Soyoung, Director of Strategic Technology Development at the Ministry of Science and ICT, stated at the "Open Forum on Advancing the National Strategic Technology System" hosted by the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies on September 18, "The national strategic technologies will be reorganized to reflect the changing environment of technological hegemony competition and the demands of the research field."

The presentation introducing the direction for advancing national strategic technologies included future materials, power grids, and renewable energy as subjects under review. However, the distributed materials for the event did not mention the inclusion of renewable energy as a strategic technology under review. Shin added, "It will be reviewed by the end of the year."

The current national strategic technologies were finalized in October 2022 under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration. The number increased to 12 by adding advanced mobility and next-generation nuclear power to the 10 national strategic technologies designated under the Moon Jae-in administration. Even during the Moon administration, which promoted a nuclear phase-out policy, renewable energy was not included as a national strategic technology.

The likelihood of renewable energy being included as a national strategic technology has increased due to remarks made by President Lee Jaemyung. At a press conference marking his first 100 days in office, President Lee emphasized, "The direction South Korea must take is clear. Expanding renewable energy and energy transition are key." Since the president directly mentioned this direction, the importance of renewable energy has been explicitly highlighted in the context of national strategic technologies.

On the other hand, it cannot be ruled out that nuclear power may be excluded from the list of strategic technologies. Next-generation nuclear power has already been omitted from the current administration's national policy agenda. The current 12 national strategic technologies include small modular reactors (SMRs), advanced nuclear systems, and waste management. President Lee previously pointed out, "South Korea does not yet possess independent SMR technology," raising questions about the effectiveness of the existing strategic technologies.

Park Inkyu, Director-General for Science and Technology Innovation at the Ministry of Science and ICT, responded to questions about the possibility of retaining next-generation nuclear power after the event, saying, "SMRs are currently attracting significant global attention, and we have entered this field as a leader," drawing a clear line. He added, "In the long term, nuclear fusion is also part of energy technology."

Experts have expressed critical views on these developments. Lee Deokhwan, Professor Emeritus at Sogang University, said, "It is questionable whether fostering the renewable energy sector, which is already dominated by China, as a strategic technology will yield any results."

The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to finalize and announce the national strategic technologies by the end of this year after gathering additional expert opinions following two open forums.