Shown in this undated file photo released by Korea Electric Power Corp. (Kepco) is the first reactor of the Barakah nuclear plant of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). (Korea Electric Power Corp. )
South Korea's state-run utility Korea Electric Power Corp. (Kepco) said Monday it has started a process to insert fuel rods into the second reactor in the Barakah nuclear plant of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Kepco and the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corp. (ENEC) said they kicked off the process starting last week.
South Korea completed the insertion of fuel rods into the first reactor in March last year.
The fuel rod injection came after the UAE issued an operating license for the second unit earlier this month.
In 2009, a Kepco-led consortium won a $20 billion contract to build four nuclear reactors in Barakah, 270 kilometers west of Abu Dhabi, marking South Korea's first export of its homegrown commercial atomic power plant.
South Korea has been building four units of the APR1400, an advanced pressurized water nuclear reactor with a capacity of 1,400 megawatts.
The first reactor was completed in 2018 and currently awaits full-fledged commercial operation this year.
When the four reactors are completed, they will be responsible for roughly a quarter of the Middle East nation's energy demand. (Yonhap)
