South Korea Restarts Nuclear Reactor to Avoid Blackouts During Winter

Stuck in the middle of a colder than normal winter the South Korean government has been campaigning nationwide to urge its people to save energy wherever possible and prevent blackouts.
Yet as the demand for power continues to increase they have taken other measures to avoid catastrophe.

One of the two nuclear reactors shut nearly two months ago, due to some parts having been found to have forged documents, will be brought back online.

The Nuclear Safety & Security Commission stated that it granted approval to the suggestion that the 1,000MW reactor in Yeonggwang country, southwest of Seoul, be restarted immediately, with a spokesman from Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, the subsidiary of Korea Electric Power Corp, said that the reactor is expected to fully supply power to the grid by the end of the week.

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It has not yet been decided as to whether or not the second reactor should be restarted or not.

The government insists that the parts with the forged quality documents were all part of non-essential operations, but even so, it has begun to investigate all 23 reactors in the country. Whilst oil and gas supply the majority of S. Koreas power nuclear is important, accounting for a third of total production.

By. Joao Peixe of Oilprice.com