Moon vows to scrap all plans for new nuclear reactors

SEOUL, June 19 (Yonhap) -- President Moon Jae-in vowed Monday to scrap all existing plans for new nuclear power plants and not to extend the operation of any aged reactors nearing the end of their initial life cycles.

"In the lead up to the presidential election, I promised to make a safe Republic of Korea," the president said in a ceremony in Busan, marking the permanent shutdown of the country's first nuclear reactor, the Kori-1.

"We will abolish our nuclear-centered energy policy and move toward a nuclear-free era. We will completely scrap construction plans for new nuclear reactors that are currently under way," Moon added.

The Kori 1, located in the southern port city of Busan, was South Korea's first reactor, built in 1977.

Its permanent shutdown was decided in 2015, long before the Moon Jae-in administration came into office last month.

bdk@yna.co.kr
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