Wolsong nuclear power plant 3
Gross capacity
624MW
Wolsong nuclear power plant 3 is a pressurised heavy water reactor unit at Wolsong nuclear power plant in South Korea rated at 624 MW gross. It is operating. Commercial operation began 1 Jul 1998.
Specification
| Reactor type | Pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR) |
|---|---|
| Model | CANDU 6 |
| Size class | Large |
| Coolant | Heavy water |
| Moderator | Heavy water |
| Gross capacity | 624MW |
| Net capacity (reference) | 605MW |
| Net capacity (design) | 665MW |
| Thermal output | 2,061MWt |
| Typical enrichment | Natural uranium, 0.71% U-235 |
Ownership & location
| Site | Wolsong nuclear power plant |
|---|---|
| Unit | 3 |
| Country | South Korea |
| Owner | Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co100% |
| Operator | Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power |
| Coordinates | 35.7111, 129.4743 |
Fuel chain for this unit
Fuel form
Natural uranium dioxide bundles
Enrichment
Natural uranium, 0.71% U-235 no enrichment required
Who makes this assembly
- BWX Technologies CANDU fuel bundles, natural uranium
- Cameco Corporation CANDU fuel bundles, natural uranium
- China North Nuclear Fuel Company CANDU fuel bundles
- KEPCO Nuclear Fuel CANDU fuel bundles
- Nuclear Power Corporation of India PHWR fuel bundles, natural uranium
Upstream
This unit runs on natural uranium, so its fuel chain has no enrichment step at all: mine → mill → conversion → fabrication. That is the shortest fuel chain of any commercial reactor type, and it makes the operator independent of the four organisations that control enrichment worldwide.
Fabricator capability is recorded against reactor type and model line, not against named units —
utilities do not publish fuel contracts. See the fuel chain.
Timeline
- 17 Mar 1994Construction start
- 19 Feb 1998First criticality
- 25 Mar 1998Grid connection
- 1 Jul 1998Commercial operation
Other units at Wolsong nuclear power plant
| Unit | Status | Gross MW |
|---|---|---|
| Wolsong nuclear power plant 1 | Retired | 683 |
| Wolsong nuclear power plant 2 | 599 | |
| Wolsong nuclear power plant 4 | 589 |
Other CANDU 6 units
14 units worldwide share this model designation.
| Unit | Country | Status | Gross MW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 1 | Romania | 706 | |
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 2 | Romania | 705 | |
| Embalse nuclear power plant | Argentina | 656 | |
| Point Lepreau nuclear power plant 1 | Canada | 705 | |
| Qinshan nuclear power plant 3-1 | China | 728 | |
| Qinshan nuclear power plant 3-2 | China | 728 | |
| Wolsong nuclear power plant 2 | South Korea | 599 | |
| Wolsong nuclear power plant 4 | South Korea | 589 | |
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 3 | Romania | Pre-construction | 720 |
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 4 | Romania | Pre-construction | 720 |
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 5 | Romania | Cancelled | 706 |
| Gentilly nuclear power plant 2 | Canada | Retired | 675 |
Sources
- Global Nuclear Power Tracker, Global Energy Monitor, August 2026 release — CC BY 4.0 · retrieved 2026-09-06 · this unit last researched by GEM on 2024-05-13
- GEM.wiki entry (further reading) — CC BY-SA 4.0 — linked, not quoted