South Korea Restarts 6 Nuclear Reactors and Accelerates Renewables Amidst Middle East Tensions

# South Korea Restarts 6 Nuclear Reactors and Accelerates Renewables Amidst Middle East Tensions

Facing escalating tensions in the Middle East and a significant reliance on hydrocarbon imports, South Korea unveiled an emergency energy security plan in March 2026. This plan aims to guarantee the stability of its energy supply by increasing nuclear production and accelerating the deployment of renewable energies — a particularly critical strategy for the world's fourth-largest importer of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

19 Active Nuclear Reactors by Mid-May 2026

The South Korean government plans to increase the number of its active nuclear reactors to 19 by mid-May 2026. This increase includes the restart of six units temporarily shut down for maintenance. The country has 26 operational nuclear power plants, representing a total capacity of 26 GW, of which 15 units (16.45 GW) are currently in operation.

The first two units, Shinwolseong 1 and Gori 2, are expected to be back in service by the end of March 2026. Four other units — Hanbit 6, Hanul 3, Wolseong 2, and Wolseong 3 — will follow by mid-May. These restarts are strategic: they usually occur in spring, a period of low electricity demand, but are being accelerated here to strengthen national energy security in the face of a deteriorating geopolitical context.

Nuclear power already accounts for approximately 30% of South Korea's electricity production. By having 19 reactors active simultaneously, Seoul seeks to reduce its immediate dependence on LNG imports, whose prices have experienced significant fluctuations since tensions in the Strait of Hormuz.

South Korea, the World's Fourth Largest LNG Importer

South Korea's energy vulnerability is structural. The country imports almost all of its hydrocarbon needs — oil, gas, coal — and relies on Middle Eastern maritime routes for approximately 70% of its oil supplies. In 2025, South Korea imported 46 million tons of LNG, representing about 10% of global demand, making it the fourth-largest global buyer behind Japan, China, and India.

This dependence directly translates into economic risk: a disruption of the Persian Gulf maritime routes or a sudden increase in LNG prices can weigh several billion dollars on the Korean trade balance and fuel domestic inflation. The March 2026 plan is a response to this systemic risk, not just a temporary situation.

Increased Flexibility in Coal Production if Needed

In addition to the nuclear effort, South Korea plans to use coal as a flexible electricity production lever in the event of major disruptions to LNG supply. This measure is designed as a last resort solution to mitigate potential supply shortages.

Increasing the utilization rate of coal-fired power plants will be strictly regulated: limited to periods when the environmental impact is lowest, it will be accompanied by strengthened air pollution control measures. The objective is to prevent a sudden increase in fine particulate emissions while ensuring the continuity of electricity supply.

This measure is controversial internally. South Korean environmental organizations point out that coal already accounts for 30% of the electricity mix and that its retention as a backup option delays the energy transition. The government responds that supply security is paramount in the current context.

Acceleration of Renewable Energy Deployment

In the medium term, the plan emphasizes accelerating the deployment of renewable energies. The government is committed to faster execution of its budget allocated to the supply and financing of projects in this sector, and to simplifying the procedures for commissioning new installations.

South Korea has significant solar potential, particularly in the southern regions and on the rooftops of industrial areas. In 2025, installed solar capacity reached 28 GW, compared to 11 GW in 2020 — rapid progress, but still insufficient to offset import dependence. Offshore wind, particularly in the Yellow Sea, is identified as the next lever for large-scale development.

_The plan also provides for simplifying licensing and grid connection procedures for renewable projects, an administrative bottleneck that has slowed several projects in recent years._

A Model of Energy Diversification Under Geopolitical Constraint

South Korea's strategy illustrates a common dilemma for industrial economies highly dependent on energy imports: how to reconcile short-term supply security, medium-term transition to low-carbon energies, and long-term industrial competitiveness?

Seoul's response — nuclear as a foundation, renewables as a trajectory, coal as a safety net — is pragmatic and consistent with its geographical and industrial constraints. South Korea is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, with limited hydraulic resources and a heavy industry (steel, petrochemicals, semiconductors) that is very electricity-intensive.

This plan does not resolve the structural dependence on imports, but it reduces vulnerability to short-term shocks. The fundamental question — how to finance and deploy enough renewables to significantly reduce LNG imports by 2035 — remains unanswered.

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Sources: Enerdata, South Korea strengthens its energy security in the face of the Middle East crisis, March 2026.

South Korea as a Model for Energy Mix Under Constraint

South Korea's experience is of interest to many countries that share similar constraints: high industrial density, limited natural resources, dependence on energy imports. Japan, which followed a comparable trajectory after Fukushima (2011) — reactor closures, then gradual restarts — is closely observing Seoul's decisions.

The notable difference between the two countries is that South Korea never abandoned nuclear power as radically as Japan. Under the Moon Jae-in government (2017-2022), a policy of gradual nuclear phase-out had been announced. The Yoon Suk-yeol government, which came to power in 2022, reversed this trajectory by reaffirming nuclear power as a pillar of the energy mix. The March 2026 plan is part of this political continuity.

This reversal illustrates a broader phenomenon: in several industrial democracies, nuclear power is returning to the energy agenda after years of being sidelined, under the dual pressure of supply security and climate objectives. France, Belgium, Japan, and now South Korea have all revised their positions on nuclear power between 2022 and 2026.