Jeonbuk Province Ramps Up Efforts to Attract "Artificial Sun" Nuclear Fusion Research Facility

Fostering a Hub for Future Energy

On November 4, Jeonbuk Province held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Center together with Gunsan City and National Assembly members from the Jeonbuk region, urging for the establishment of a nuclear fusion research facility, known as the "artificial sun," in Saemangeum, Jeonbuk.

Jeonbuk Provincial Government Office building. Provided by Jeonbuk Province

The event was attended by 16 people, including Jeonbuk Governor Kim Kwan-young, National Assembly members from Jeonbuk, the Chairman of the Jeonbuk Provincial Council, Yoo Heeyeol (former Vice Minister of Science and Technology and co-chairman of the invitation committee), representatives from the Saemangeum Development Agency, Gunsan City, Jeonbuk National University, and Gunsan National University.

They expressed their intention to foster Saemangeum as a hub for future energy and emphasized that Saemangeum in Jeonbuk is the optimal location for the nuclear fusion research facility. They called on the government and the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy to select Saemangeum as the final site.

Since 2009, Jeonbuk Province and Gunsan City have signed agreements with the National Fusion Research Institute, the predecessor of the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy. In 2012, they established the Plasma Technology Research Institute, laying the foundation for fusion research. Since then, they have continued to build infrastructure and improve conditions to attract research facilities.

Saemangeum is a national transportation hub where roads, railways, ports, and airports are organically connected, and it is the only science and technology demonstration-type industrial complex in Korea equipped with RE100-based clean energy infrastructure.

These features demonstrate that Saemangeum offers the optimal environment for the artificial sun (nuclear fusion) research facility. The region has also established an industrial base for related sectors such as secondary batteries, carbon materials, and the energy industry.

In particular, since President Lee Jaemyung has announced plans to develop Saemangeum as a testbed for advanced industries, proponents argue that Saemangeum is a realistic and inevitable choice for the nuclear fusion research facility.

Kim Kwan-young, Governor of Jeonbuk Province, stated, "Building on our experience in nuclear fusion research collaboration and the infrastructure of Saemangeum, we will leap forward as the center of Korea's future energy. With the united support of the political community in Jeonbuk, we will do our utmost to ensure the successful attraction of the nuclear fusion research facility."

Meanwhile, the province has launched the "100-Member Committee for Attracting the Nuclear Fusion Research Facility," co-chaired by Governor Kim Kwan-young, Kim Euigyeom (Administrator of the Saemangeum Development Agency), Kang Imjun (Mayor of Gunsan), and Yoo Heeyeol (former Vice Minister of Science and Technology). The province plans to begin full-scale efforts to attract the facility, focusing on the standing invitation committee.