(Yonhap Interview) S. Korea, U.S. can make 'great' progress in SMRs: State Department official

Incheon, South Korea - October 30, 2023 - The United States and South Korea have the potential to make significant strides in the development of small modular reactors (SMRs), according to a U.S. State Department official. Christopher Klein, the deputy assistant secretary for nuclear nonproliferation and commercial competitiveness, highlighted the complementary strengths of both nations in an interview with Yonhap News Agency.

As the global nuclear sector experiences a renaissance, Klein emphasized that the combined expertise of the U.S. and South Korea could lead to great achievements. SMRs have gained attention as a flexible and potentially more cost-effective alternative to traditional large-scale nuclear power plants. The U.S. and South Korea have been strengthening their collaboration in the SMR sector, with companies like SK Group investing in U.S. nuclear power firms and Doosan Enerbility supplying components to U.S.-based SMR developers.

The three countries recently signed a memorandum of cooperation to establish a framework for joint efforts in the nuclear sector, including deploying SMRs, optimizing supply chains, and providing knowledge transfer and training. The U.S. hopes to move quickly towards concrete projects and believes that the partnership among the three nations could make them formidable competitors in the global nuclear arena.