South Korea Moves to Legislate Advance Ordering Rules for Key Nuclear Equipment

The South Korean government and the ruling party are pushing to revise nuclear-related regulations, aiming to codify the advance ordering mechanism for key nuclear power plant equipment into law. The initiative seeks to clarify the legal basis for ordering certain long-lead-time manufactured equipment before the licensing process is completed, reducing disputes over the timing of equipment orders during nuclear plant construction.

According to sources from the National Assembly and the government, Democratic Party lawmaker Heo Seong-mu has drafted an amendment to the Nuclear Power Plant Regulatory Act that includes provisions allowing advance ordering of critical components needed for nuclear plant construction. The amendment is currently gathering co-signatures from ruling party lawmakers and will be submitted for parliamentary review once the required quorum is reached.

The advancement of the amendment is linked to earlier research conducted by Kim Sung-hwan, Minister of Climate, Energy, and Environment. In April of last year, Kim inspected the Changwon nuclear equipment manufacturing facility of Doosan Enerbility and held meetings with nuclear equipment manufacturers. At the meeting, companies reported that major components typically cannot be formally ordered until the implementation plan is approved, making it difficult to guarantee delivery schedules for critical equipment. Subsequently, the government and the ruling party began discussing the establishment of an advance ordering system through legislation.

Currently, South Korean law does not explicitly restrict the timing of orders for major nuclear power plant equipment. For example, the National Contract Act contains no specific provisions regarding the ordering timeline for related equipment. However, previous National Assembly audits have criticized that pre-licensing procurement and pre-construction could constitute "de facto construction advancement," causing projects to be treated as a fait accompli before procedures are completed. As a result, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) has long maintained an internal policy of signing major equipment procurement contracts only after obtaining implementation plan approval under the Electric Power Development Promotion Act.

The manufacturing cycle for key nuclear equipment is lengthy, with some "long-lead-time manufactured equipment" requiring approximately 36 months of production. Delays in ordering directly impact the overall project schedule. Such equipment includes core components such as reactor pressure vessels, steam generators, and pressurizers. A representative of a nuclear equipment supplier noted that the industry typically arranges production capacity on a "first-come, first-served" basis, and even before contracts are signed, companies receive formal notifications in advance and begin production preparations, "which amounts to preparing in advance without a formal contract or payment."

According to political sources, the amendment is expected to include provisions allowing long-lead-time manufactured equipment to be ordered before the licensing process is completed. Currently, relevant parties are focusing on revising procurement and contract provisions under the Nuclear Power Plant Regulatory Act. The scope of equipment eligible for advance ordering and the specific procurement methods are expected to be further clarified through presidential decree. An official from the Ministry of Climate Change stated that the government is examining whether it is necessary to institutionalize the current practice of advance procurement to more accurately reflect project execution needs, though the specific plan has not yet been finalized.

Industry observers expect that if the amendment is passed, nuclear projects will be able to secure long-lead-time manufactured equipment supply through formal contracts ahead of time, reducing reliance on informal production scheduling arrangements and thereby shortening construction periods. The Yeongdeok Nuclear Power Plant project promoted by the South Korean government is considered likely to be the first case to apply this system. The project is expected to be completed between 2037 and 2038.