22/04 South Korea suspends Kori reactor operations

BY AKIRA NAKANO STAFF WRITER
2011/04/22

Lee Chae-won, who lives near the Kori nuclear power plant in Busan (Akira Nakano)

SEOUL--The operator of South Korea's Kori nuclear power plant has suspended operation of its oldest reactor because of public concerns about safety in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan.

The plant's No. 1 reactor has been offline since April 12 due to an electrical malfunction. Its operator, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP), decided April 20 not to restart power generation because of public unease.

Kim Jong-shin, president of KHNP, told a news conference: "The people have anxieties and doubts about the safety of the (No. 1) reactor. Some are calling for the decommissioning of the reactor. In the light of those opinions, we decided to invite a more detailed inspection from the government."

According to the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, which is responsible for inspecting nuclear power plants, circuit breakers in the reactor malfunctioned April 12. Similar defects and design faults were found in other breakers, the institute said.

There was a separate incident at the plant's No. 4 reactor April 19, when a worker cut an electrical connection by accident. An emergency backup electric supply kicked in and there was no damage to the reactor, but two workers suffered burns.

The No. 1 reactor of Kori nuclear power plant started operation in 1978. It was South Korea's first industrial nuclear reactor. Since 2008, it has been operating beyond the 30-year life span envisaged when it was built. The Kori nuclear power plant has five reactors.

After the accidents at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, 97 local residents petitioned Busan district court April 12 to halt the No. 1 reactor. By coincidence, operations were suspended later the same day because of the electrical malfunction.