South Korea: AI boom could add 25 to 30 GW to electricity demand

This AI-related increase would add to the demand caused by the electrification of transport and heating. Seoul is set to present an update to its long-term energy strategy in October, extended through 2040, which will notably have to decide on the issue of potential new nuclear reactors.

Kim Sung-whan did not specify a number of additional power plants, stating that the matter is still under study. However, he presented nuclear power as an essential element to consider in the future energy mix. By comparison, 25 to 30 GW would represent roughly the capacity of twenty current South Korean reactors if this additional demand were met solely by nuclear energy.

South Korea currently operates 26 nuclear reactors, which provide just under one-third of its electricity. Coal accounts for about 29% of the mix, gas 27%, while renewables make up nearly 11%.

The scale change mainly comes from announced investments in digital infrastructure. This surge also accompanies the adaptation of semiconductor technologies to large chips designed for data centers. At the end of June, authorities unveiled a vast program involving SK, GS Group, and Naver to increase the national AI data center capacity to 8.4 GW in a first phase, then to 18.4 GW by 2035. Samsung and SK Hynix, for their part, have accelerated their industrial projects related to chips, essential for AI systems.

Nuclear power returns to the center of the energy strategy

The upcoming roadmap must therefore reconcile three constraints: supply the new digital infrastructures, reduce coal’s share, and maintain a network stable enough for industries with very high electricity consumption. South Korea plans to gradually phase out coal by 2040, although some sites might be kept as a safety reserve.

The government also wants to increase the share of renewables, but the minister believes that reliance on nuclear power will remain difficult to avoid in the short and medium term. A survey by the Korean Energy Information and Culture Agency, cited by Reuters, indicates that 79% of the 2,000 respondents support integrating new nuclear plants into the future roadmap.

This direction is not unanimous. In Ulsan, considered one of the possible sites for new installations, a citizen collective gathered more than 10,000 signatures in May against new reactors, citing risks related to nuclear safety.

Data centers become an industrial issue

The South Korean government is also seeking to further distribute data centers outside the Seoul region to limit the concentration of electricity demand. Authorities have announced support for land, grid connections, cooling systems, and domestic equipment intended for computing centers.

Kim Sung-whan also indicated that several American tech groups, including Nvidia, have shown interest in setting up data centers in South Korea, attracted notably by the reliability of the power grid. The decisions expected in October will need to clarify how this new demand will be met among nuclear, renewables, gas, and strengthening electricity transmission infrastructure.