This photo taken on Oct. 20, 2020, shows the now-decommissioned Wolsong-1 nuclear reactor (R) in Gyeongju, 370 kilometers southeast of Seoul. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Nov. 7 (Korea Bizwire) — Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE), a subholding company of shipbuilding, oil refining and machinery conglomerate HD Hyundai, has announced the signing of a US$30 million investment deal with TerraPower, a U.S. nuclear power venture founded by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.
The small modular reactor (SMR) technology owned by TerraPower is drawing significant attention as an eco-friendly future energy source since no greenhouse gases are emitted during the electricity production process, while the risk of leakage or explosion is low compared to large nuclear power plants.
KSOE has been working on this deal since early this year, and with this contract, the company plans to make a more significant investment in next-generation energy technology.
By leveraging the capabilities that its subsidiary Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. has in nuclear power, KSOE plans to explore new business opportunities, and lead the development of future technology in offshore nuclear power generation and nuclear-powered vessels.
“On the back of a global carbon-free trend, SMR is emerging as a big market with huge growth potential,” KSOE said.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
