Nuclear Safety Commission to Establish SMR Regulatory Framework by 2030

The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission has decided to establish a new regulatory framework for small modular reactors (SMRs) by 2030. On February 12, the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission held its 2026-2 meeting in the main conference room and reported the "Roadmap for Establishing an SMR Regulatory Framework" containing these details.

The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission explained the need for a new regulatory framework, stating, "In addition to the i-SMR, various SMR development projects with different designs are underway with the goal of obtaining licenses in the early to mid-2030s, but the current nuclear safety regulatory framework is built on large light-water reactors, which has limited its effective application."

In Korea, the government is currently operating the i-SMR Technology Development Project Group, and next-generation SMRs such as sodium-cooled fast reactors (SFR), molten salt reactors (MSR), high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGR), and heat pipe reactors (HPR) are also being developed, mainly by the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute.

The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission has decided to push in earnest for a transition to a future regulatory paradigm that can reflect the diverse uses of SMRs and their innovative design characteristics, moving away from the existing safety regulatory framework centered on large power-generating light-water reactors.

In line with the roadmap, the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission will gradually overhaul the existing safety regulatory framework based on large nuclear power plants over the next five years, through 2030. First, it will expand and revise the existing licensing system, which currently classifies reactors as power, research, or educational reactors, so that it can also cover various purposes and designs such as marine propulsion, heat supply, and hydrogen production.

Taking into account that each SMR has a different design and applies new and innovative technologies, the commission will introduce methods of safety verification tailored to these characteristics.

To this end, it will define licensing technical standards around core functions and requirements so that operators can establish methodologies appropriate for their specific reactors, and it will also push to enact the tentatively titled "Rules on Technical Standards for Small Modular Reactors," which will provide criteria to demonstrate safety.

The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission explained that it plans to prepare detailed reform measures by 2027 and, starting in 2028, to sequentially revise relevant laws and standards after collecting diverse and extensive feedback from stakeholders.

The advance review system, which allows applicants to receive regulatory review even before formally submitting a licensing application, is in the legislative process with the goal of introduction within this year. A reactor-type-specific regulatory research group, in which regulators, developers, and researchers as stakeholders jointly discuss safety issues, will also begin operations in the first half of the year.

Meanwhile, regarding the innovative small modular reactor (i-SMR), the commission explained, "Although it is the same pressurized light-water reactor type as existing large nuclear power plants, we plan to exempt certain standards or allow safety to be demonstrated in different ways, in recognition of its differentiated design."

The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission has already prepared, last year, the "Regulation on the Recognition of Alternative Application of Technical Standards for Reactor Facilities, etc." and i-SMR safety review guidelines to enable reviews that can reflect the new design characteristics.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.