‘3대 메가’로 2040년 전력 수요 27GW 늘어…원전 19기 분량

By 2040, the projected power demand has increased by 27 gigawatts (GW), reaching around 27 GW from 19 operating nuclear reactors, as reported in South Korea's 12th Power Supply Basic Plan (2026-2040). The plan, published in June, anticipates a rise in power demand to 158.4-165.0 GW by 2040, which is a 26.6-26.8 percentage increase from the initial estimate of 131.8-138.2 GW reported in April.

This surge in demand primarily comes from the rise in demand for semiconductor manufacturing, which accounts for the majority of the increase, as well as a 2.7 GW increase in data center demand. The government is expected to extend the operational life of nine aging nuclear reactors until 2030 to meet the increased demand. The 38 GW additional demand required by the 'Three Major Mega Projects' includes 18.4 GW from artificial intelligence data centers and 20 GW from semiconductor manufacturing.

The National Renewable Energy Policy Research Office's energy transition policy research division head, Park Woo-young, emphasized that supplying this large-scale power for 10-15 years in a carbon-neutral manner is a challenge for the future.