On October 5, 2018, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a final safety evaluation report and standard design approval for Korea Electric Power Corporation and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power’s Advanced Power Reactor 1400 (APR1400).  The approval, which indicates the NRC finds the design technically acceptable but does not fully certify the design, is valid for 15 years.  Separately, the NRC is preparing a rulemaking to fully certify the design for use in the United States.

Background

On December 23, 2014, both companies submitted an application to certify the APR1400 for use in the United States.  The design, as approved, would produce approximately 1,400 megawatts of electricity.  The APR1400 features enhanced systems to safely shut down the reactor or mitigate the effects of an accident.

Next Steps

Neither a standard design approval nor design certification grant permission to build or operate a reactor.  Full certification, if granted by the Commission following the staff’s recommendation, is valid for 15 years and allows a utility to reference the design when applying for a Combined License to build and operate a nuclear power plant.

Other Reactor Designs

The NRC has certified five other designs: the Advanced Boiling Water Reactor, System 80+, AP600, AP1000 and the Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor.  The staff is reviewing applications to certify two other designs: the U.S. Advanced Pressurized Water Reactor and the NuScale small modular reactor.  The staff is also reviewing an application to renew the ABWR certification.

Additional information about the APR1400 design review is available on the NRC’s web site at www.nrc.gov.  For additional information, please contact Scott Burnell of the NRC at (301) 415-8200.