Importance of the Government's Role on the Establishment of RI Supply Chain

摘要

In this presentation, the importance of the government's role for the development of the nation's radiation and radioisotope industries will be delivered. The nuclear power industry in Korea has been successfully grown, accompanied with a rapid development of the Korean economy from the 1970s. Government investment, especially in R&D, was focused on the nuclear power industry until 1995. 35 years after the first power plant was launched at Kori in 1978, Korea has now become an exporter of nuclear power reactors. Since its establishment in 1959, the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) has contributed significantly to nuclear research and development. In contrast, investment in the field of non-power nuclear applications, such as radiation and radioisotopes, has been relatively pushed back on the priority list thus far. A first comprehensive promotion plan for the utilization, research, and development of radiation and radioisotopes was started in 1995 to create a balance between the nuclear power industries and radiation and radioisotope industries. A promotional plan, Utilization of Radiation and Radioisotopes, was launched in 2002. In 2012, the share of government research funding for radiation technology was about 170 M USD out of a total budget of 662M USD, or 25.8%. However, in 2017, this share is expected to become even. Under this scheme, a new research reactor project, a proton accelerator project, a regional cyclotron installation project, radiation applications research, nuclear medicine research, and an RI platform project are moving forward. In particular, the production of medical radioisotopes from a new research reactor will boost up the non-power nuclear industry in Korea. Now, the establishment of a national radioisotope supply chain is under discussion in Korea. The government's role in the supply chain will be to support the formation of infrastructure. KAERI has been a hub for RI production and supply, and will be at the center of this movement by connecting the government with private sectors. The public sector will undertake the production of highly safety-sensitive radioisotopes. And, the public sector will be involved in the arrangement of demand-based supply. Market competitive business will be the area of the private sector. Overviewing the promotional plan of the Korean government for the radiation and radioisotope industries will be beneficial to countries that are preparing such a plan.