Location: Kori, Chang’an-ŭp, Kijang-kun, Pusan, South Korea

Address: 216 Kori, Chang’an-ŭp, Kijang-kun, Pusan 619-711, South Korea

Telephone Number: +82-51-726-2114

Subordinate to: Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., Ltd. (한국수력원자력주)

Size: 587MW(e) pressurized water reactor (PWR)

Primary Function: Production of electricity

Description: Kori-1 is South Korea’s first nuclear power reactor. The reactor was provided on a turnkey basis and began commercial operations in 1978. Kori-1 is a two-loop, Westinghouse pressurized light water reactor and its sister plant is the Kewaunee nuclear power plant in Wisconsin, USA. Kori-1 was constructed under the first phase of South Korea’s nuclear power program in which foreign firms were contracted for the provision and construction of reactors, with Korean firms playing a minimal role in order to acquire technological know-how. The primary goal of this first phase was for South Korean industries to gain the knowledge and expertise to manufacture the equipment and components for nuclear power plants. During this period, foreign capital was the primary source of financing nuclear power plant construction, so South Korea required potential contractors to provide financing sources with their bids.

The Korea Electric Power Corporation was the primary project manager for the construction of Kori-1, but foreign firms providing the equipment design and construction services were granted de facto project responsibility. The US firm Westinghouse Electric Corporation constructed Kori-1 and provided the reactor; General Electric Company provided the steam generator; GEC supplied the turbine generators; and Gilbert/Commonwealth provided architectural engineering services. Hyundai Engineering and Construction, and Donga Construction Industrial Corporation played minor roles as subcontractors providing civil works and equipment installation services. In addition, South Korean firms manufactured eight percent of the nuclear reactor’s equipment and components. In 1995 a project to replace old components was launched that included the replacement of two steam generators and plant auxiliary systems. Kori-1 was originally planned to be decommissioned in 2008 when its license expires, but as of late 2003 Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Corporation (KHNP) had been negotiating for an extension of ten years.

Key sources: Ministry of Science and Technology, <http://www.most.go.kr>; Ministry of Science and Technology, Wŏnjaryŏk Anjŏnbaeksŏ (Seoul: MOST, 2003); Yonhap News Agency, 20 November 2000, in “S Korea’s Kori Nuke Plant No. 1 Achieves 1 Tln KWH in 23 Years,” Asia Pulse, 29 November 2000, in Lexis-Nexis, <http://web.lexis-nexis.com>; Mark Hibbs, “KHNP Expects Life Extension Procedures Soon for Kori 1,” Inside NRC, 1 December 2003, p. 8, in Lexis-Nexis, <http://web.lexis-nexis.com>; “Kori Nuclear Power Plant: Korea’s First PWR Site,” Nuclear News, November 1992, p. 45, in Lexis-Nexis, <http://web.lexis-nexis.com>; Shin Ho Chul and Ann MacLachlan, “Korean Firms, Bringing New Units on Line Within 68 Months, Aim for Less,” Nucleonics Week, 22 August 1985, p. 2, in Lexis-Nexis, <http://web.lexis-nexis.com>; Shin Ho Chul and Ann MacLachlan, “Korean Strive for Self-Reliance in Nuclear Plant Construction,” Nucleonics Week, 19 December 1985, p. 8, in Lexis-Nexis, <http://web.lexis-nexis.com>.