South Korea has been expanding its nuclear energy ambitions since President Yoon Suk-yeol assumed power in May 2022 and reversed former President Moon Jae-in's policy of phasing out nuclear power.

The SMR Alliance includes 11 government and public institutions, including the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy (MOTIE), Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) and the Korea Energy Economics Institute, as well as 31 companies, including GS Energy, SK Inc, Samsung C&T, Daewoo E&C and Doosan Enerability.

As of August 2020, South Korea operates a fleet of 24 nuclear reactor units, representing 23.2 gigawatts (GW) of capacity, at four nuclear power complexes.

South Korean refiners imported 7.407 million barrels of US crude in May, compared with 11.516 million barrels a year earlier,

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said in a statement that 21 to 28 coal-fired power plants would be closed from March 1 to March 31 in an effort to reduce emissions of fine dust.

The countries signed an $8.3 billion economic cooperation pact that included a $6 billion deal between Saudi Aramco and the Korean company S-Oil to build an oil refinery and downstream petrochemical facilities in South Korea.

The South Korean government Tuesday gave its final approval to lower taxes on LNG used for power production by 75%, and raise those on thermal coal by 28% from April 1, in a move likely to boost downstream gas consumption.

The leaders of South Korea and the United Arab Emirates have said the two countries will seek opportunities to cooperate in the field of nuclear energy beyond their current collaboration on the Barakah nuclear power plant project. This will include opportunities in third countries.

THE KOREA BIZWIRE - Seven out of 10 South Koreans voted in favor of using atomic power, a survey showed Wednesday, amid the Moon Jae-in government’s nuclear phase-out policy.

PLATTS - South Korea imported no Iranian crude in September -- for the first time since September 2012 -- ahead of the looming reimposition of US sanctions on Tehran, preliminary data released by Korea Customs Service showed Monday.