1st Anniversary of Signing of UAE Nuclear Power Deal

Participants of the 1st Atomic Energy Day anniversary from industry, academia and research circles adopt a resolution calling for a new leap forward

Minister of Knowledge Economy Choi Kyung-hwan delivers a speech at a ceremony to observe the 1st Atomic Energy Day? at the KEPCO building in Seoul.

Vice President Byun? Joon-yun of the Korea Electric Power Corp. receives the Industrial Merit Gold Medal from Minister Choi Kyung-hwan of the Ministry of Knowledge Economy for his achievement in KoreaOs exports of nuclear power plants overseas during a ceremony for the first Atomic Energy Day held on Dec. 27, 2010 at the KEPCO building in Seoul.

One year has passed since Korea was awarded a nuclear power deal with the United Arab Emirates, the nation's first overseas nuclear power unit construction project. A ceremony to observe the 1st Atomic Energy Day took place on Dec. 27 at the Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) head office in accordance with the government's decision to designate that day as Atomic Energy Day in celebration of Korea's winning of the UAE project. Among the roughly 1,000 people on hand at the anniversary event were Minister of Knowledge Economy Choi Kyung-hwan, Second Vice Minister of Education, Science and Technology Kim Chang-kyung, KEPCO Chairman Kim Ssang-su, Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction President & CEO Park Ji-won and Hyundai Engineering & Construction (HDEC) President Kim Joong-kyum, along with other representatives from atomic energy-related industries.
Atomic Energy Day has become the sole and biggest legal anniversary day in the nuclear power industry, organized by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy (MKE) and the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST), abolishing Atomic Energy Safety Day, a non-legal anniversary day, which fell on Sept. 10.
The government's designation of Atomic Energy Day was designed not only to boost the morale of those in the Korean nuclear power industry and enhance public awareness toward atomic energy, but also to serve as an opportunity to muster capabilities related to atomic energy uses, including the promotion of the domestic nuclear power industry, and the overseas exporting, construction and operation of nuclear power units.
The top honor, the Order of Industrial Service, Gold Tower, went to five people, including former KEPCO director Koh Jung-myeong, KEPCO Executive Vice President Byun Jun-yeon, HDEC President Kim and Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction President Park, while Han Pil-soon, ex-president of the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI), was presented with the Order of Science and Technology in the creation category. KEPCO, Doosan Heavy Industries and HDEC were the corporate bodies to receive the Presidential Award. They are among a total of 207 Order, Presidential Award, Prime MinsterOs Award and MKE Minister's Award winners in recognition of their contribution to the landing of the UAE project. KEPCO E&C President & CEO Ahn Seung-kyoo was honored with the Order of Industrial Service, Silver Tower, while the late KEPCO Plant Engineering & Services (KPS) president & CEO Kwon Oh-hyung was awarded with the order posthumously.
The Order of Industrial Service, Bronze Tower went to Director General Kang Nam-hoon, of the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Director General Kim Jin-soo, of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ambassador Chung Yong-chil, of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, while three others, including Na Ki-yong, director of the MKE, was presented with the Order of Industrial Service, Iron Tower. In his commemorative message, MKE Minister Choi praised the flat-out efforts by those in the domestic nuclear power industry and their achievements. He also urged them to spearhead the creation of jobs and the development of Korea into a top-rated nuclear power nation.
In particular, Minister Choi stressed that the nation should not rest on its laurels now that rival countries have stepped up the competition to land more orders following Korea's winning of the UAE nuclear power deal. He called for the Korean nuclear power industry to advance the technological self-sufficiency of core nuclear power technologies as soon as possible and overhaul the structure for exporting nuclear power units.
The minister told the atomic energy industry to cultivate nuclear power experts so that its efforts to develop the industry into a new growth engine can lead to the creation of jobs, while accelerating their bids to make Korean-made nuclear power units globally-recognized high-quality ones by converging high-tech IT, control software, new materials and other interdisciplinary industries. He also called for making the industry beloved by people in terms of usefulness and contribution through thorough management of nuclear power units. In his speech, KEPCO Chairman Kim noted that the UAE deal was owed to concerted efforts by government and the private sector. In his commemorative speech, MEST Vice Minister Kim said that Korea's exporting of nuclear power units to the UAE has served as an opportunity to demonstrate the nation's capability in the construction and operation of nuclear power units as well as safety regulation. All participants from industry, academia and research circles adopted a resolution designed to give a leg-up to the industry's bid to land additional nuclear power projects and promote the development of the domestic nuclear power industry. nw