[Yonhap News Photo]
Hundreds of power plant workers sealed off a conference hall at their headquarters to foil a board meeting aimed at endorsing a government decision to suspend the construction of two nuclear reactors under President Moon Jae-in's "nuclear exit" policy.
Pictures showed hundreds of workers occupying the lobby of a building used by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP), which operates nuclear power plants, as its head office in the southeastern city of Gyeongju. KHNP President Lee Kwan-sup and six other board members were seen being pushed out.
The 13-member board was to hold a meeting about a cabinet decision on June 27 to stop the construction of two reactors, slated for completion in 2022 near the southeastern port city of Busan, pending public hearings and debate for three months. "We strongly oppose the suspended construction of nuclear power plants," read placards held up by workers during their sit-down protest in the KHNP building.
Moon promised to replace old nuclear and coal-powered thermal power plants with clean and renewable energy sources and closed South Korea's oldest 580-megawatt reactor on June 18. Industrial and academic communities have challenged his campaign to reduce South Korea's heavy dependence on nuclear energy which accounts for about 30 percent of its power supply.
[Yonhap News Photo]
Old reactors have been the source of controversy with activists raising concerns about a possible disaster following the 2011 Fukushima crisis. KHNP workers have expressed worries about massive layoffs and collapse of a nuclear energy industry which has accumulated world-class technologies for decades.
In South Korea, nearly 70 percent of power supply comes from fossil-fueled power stations and nuclear reactors. Opponents maintained there would be no overnight remedy, citing the slow pace of renewable energy development. They warned a hasty transition would cause a power supply shortage and high electricity bills.
Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
reporter
임장원
cwlim34@ajunews.com
