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Korean officials meet leaders in Turkey, Saudi Arabia as nuclear race heats up

Published: 23 Feb. 2025, 16:28

LEE JAE-LIM
[email protected]

Deputy Minister for Energy Policy Lee Ho-hyeon participates at the second Roadmaps to New Nuclear conference in Paris on Sept. 19, 2024. [MINISTRY OF TRADE, INDUSTRY AND ENERGY]

The Korean government is meeting officials from Turkey and Saudi Arabia this week as the country aims to ramp up nuclear exports in an increasingly competitive energy market.

Deputy Minister for Energy Policy Lee Ho-hyeon is scheduled to visit Turkey and Saudi Arabia from Monday to Thursday. Lee will meet with Turkey’s Deputy Ministers of Energy and Natural Resources, Zafer Demircan and Ahmet Berat Conkar, on Monday to explore partnerships on various bilateral energy issues, marking the first high-level government dialogue on nuclear cooperation between the two nations in 13 years.

Turkey is currently planning new nuclear plants in the Black Sea region of Sinop and Thrace. In 2023, the state-run Korea Electric Power Corporation submitted a preliminary proposal to construct the Sinop facility, which will add another 4.8 gigawatt of capacity to the country. Turkey is currently undergoing negotiations with Korea, as well as other international partners including Russia, regarding the Sinop plant; China's State Power Investment Corporation is gunning for the Thrace project.

Turkey aims to procure 20 gigawatts of nuclear power capacity by 2050. The Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, currently under construction by Russia's state-owned Rosatom, is Turkey’s first nuclear facility consisting of four 1,200-megawatt reactors.

Lee will also meet with Nasser Bin Hadi Alqahtani, Saudi Arabia’s assistant minister of energy for electricity affairs, on Wednesday to discuss possible collaboration on large-scale nuclear power projects, electric grid expansion and clean hydrogen development. The meeting is expected to include briefings on the nation’s energy policy trends.

Saudi Arabia is expanding its efforts toward energy diversification and transitioning to a sustainable energy system, presenting opportunities for closer bilateral collaboration, the Industry Ministry said.

“We will closely analyze global energy policies related to sustainable development and climate change and work to strengthen energy cooperation with Europe and the Middle East to create new opportunities for Korean companies,” Lee said in a statement.

BY LEE JAE-LIM [[email protected]]