Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant

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Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant
Wolsong (04790183).jpg
Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant
Official name월성원자력발전소
月城原子力發電所
Country South Korea
Location Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang
Coordinates 35°43′0″N129°28′40″E / 35.71667°N 129.47778°E / 35.71667; 129.47778
StatusOperational
Construction beganUnit 1: October 30, 1977
Unit 2: September 25, 1992
Unit 3: March 17, 1994
Unit 4: July 22, 1994
Unit 5: November 20, 2007
Unit 6: September 23, 2008
Commission date Unit 1: April 22, 1983
Unit 2: July 1, 1997
Unit 3: July 1, 1998
Unit 4: October 1, 1999
Unit 5: July 31, 2012
Unit 6: July 24, 2015
Decommission dateUnit 1: December 24, 2019
Owner Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power
Operator Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power
Nuclear power station
Reactor type CANDU PHWR
PWR
Reactor supplier AECL
KEPCO E&C
Cooling source Sea of Japan
Thermal capacity3 × 2061 MWth
2 × 2825 MWth
Power generation
Units operational1 × 576 MW
1 × 601 MW
1 × 567 MW
1 × 997 MW
1 × 993 MW
Make and model4 × CANDU-6
2 × OPR-1000
Units decommissioned1 × 657 MW
Nameplate capacity 3734 MW
Capacity factor 75.25%
Annual net output 30,310 GW·h (2016)
External links
Commons Related media on Commons
[ edit on Wikidata]

The Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant, or Wolsong, [1] is a nuclear power plant located on the coast near Nae-ri, Yangnam-myeon, Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang province, South Korea. It is the only South Korean nuclear power plant operating CANDU-type PHWR (Pressurized Heavy Water Reactors). [2] Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power owns the plant. [3] These reactors are capable of consuming multiple types of fuel, including wastes from South Korea's other nuclear plants.

Contents

The power plant site including Yangnam-myeon. Yangbuk-myeon and Gampo-eup was designated an industrial infrastructure development zone in 1976. Construction of Wolseong 1 started in 1976 and was completed in 1982. In the following year, the power plant began commercial operations. This PHWR reactor has a gross generation capacity of 678 MW. Wolseong reactors 2, 3 and 4 were completed in 1997, 1998 and 1999, respectively. Each of these reactors has a capacity of 700 MW. Wolseong Nuclear Plant has since operated successfully. [2]

Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant supplies about 5% of South Korea's electricity. [4]

Shin-Wolsong Nuclear Power Plant

Shin-Wolsong No. 1 and No. 2, are two new OPR-1000 type pressurized water reactors. Shin-Wolsong 1 became fully operational in July 2012. [1] [5] [6]

In June 2013 Shin-Wolsong 1 was shut down, and Shin-Wolsong 2 ordered to remain offline, until safety-related control cabling with forged safety certificates is replaced. [7] Shin Wolsong-1 was approved for restart in January 2014. [8] In November 2014, Shin Wolsong-2 loaded its first core of nuclear fuel, [8] and the plant was connected to the grid in February 2015, [9] with commercial operation commencing in July 2015. [10]

UnitTypeCapacity
(net)		Construction startOperation startNotes
Phase I
Wolsong-1 CANDU-6657 MW30 Oct 197722 April 1983Unit placed in Permanent Shutdown in 2019. [11]
Wolsong-2CANDU-6576 MW22 June 19921 July 1997 [12]
Wolsong-3CANDU-6601 MW17 March 19941 July 1998 [13]
Wolsong-4CANDU-6567 MW22 July 19941 Oct 1999 [14]
Phase II
Shin Wolsong-1 OPR-1000 997 MW20 Nov 200731 July 2012 [15]
Shin Wolsong-2OPR-1000993 MW23 Sept 200824 July 2015 [16]

Incidents

On 22 June 2024, 2.3 tons of storage water in the spent nuclear fuel storage tank was released into the ocean through a drain while Wolsong Unit 4 was suspended for planned preventive maintenance and was undergoing regular inspections. [17]

On 12 January 2025, 29 tons of radioactive waste from the liquid material storage tank of Wolsong Unit 2 was discharged into the ocean without undergoing sampling analysis. [18]

On 9 September 2025, 265 kilograms of heavy water was leaked from Wolsong Unit 2 reactor. [19]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Korea, Republic of". Power Reactor Information System (PRIS). International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Retrieved 7 June 2013.
  2. 1 2 (in Korean) 경주시의 산업·교통 (Industry and Transportation of Gyeongju) Nate / Encyclopedia of Korean Culture
  3. ↑ (Sep 10, 2007) ATS wins South Korea nuclear deal TheStar.com / Canadian Press
  4. ↑ "KHNP Fact Sheet". CANDU Owners Group website. Archived from the original on May 15, 2009. Retrieved August 31, 2009. See also site.
  5. ↑ Wolseong Nuclear Power plant Archived 2010-02-01 at the Wayback Machine Korea Neclear Energy Foundation
  6. ↑ Matthew L. Wald, (January 10, 1991) TALKING DEALS; Help for Canada's Nuclear Industry The New York Times
  7. ↑ "New component issues idle Korean reactors". World Nuclear News. 28 May 2013. Retrieved 7 June 2013.
  8. 1 2 "Shin Wolsong 2 fuel loading completed". World Nuclear News. 21 November 2014. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
  9. ↑ "Grid connection for South Korean reactor". World Nuclear News. 26 February 2015. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  10. ↑ "South Korean reactor enters commercial operation". World Nuclear News. 24 July 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  11. ↑ "Wolsong-1". PRIS. IAEA. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  12. ↑ "Wolsong-2". PRIS. IAEA. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  13. ↑ "Wolsong-3". PRIS. IAEA. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  14. ↑ "Wolsong-4". PRIS. IAEA. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  15. ↑ "Shin-Wolsong-1". PRIS. IAEA. 8 June 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  16. ↑ "Shin-Wolsong-2". PRIS. IAEA. 25 July 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  17. ↑ "2.3 tons of water leaked from the spent nuclear fuel storage tank at Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant No.. - MK". 매일경제. 2024-06-22. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  18. ↑ CHOSUNBIZ (2025-01-12). "Wolsong Unit 2 discharges 29 tons of radioactive waste into ocean, investigation underway". CHOSUNBIZ. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  19. ↑ "Heavy water leak detected at Wolsong-2 reactor; no radiation issue reported". koreajoongangdaily.joins.com. 2025-09-19. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
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