Power line towers to supply electricity to North Korea stand in a row in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, near the inter-Korean Gyeongui railway line connecting Seoul and Shinuiju in the DMZ.

The institute offered the assessment in a report on energy aid to the North published late last year. The institute did not even analyze the effectiveness of a 2-million kw light-water reactor the North is demanding since any possible halt in the operation of the reactor caused by a temporary accident or maintenance could cripple the electricity grid and industries of North Korea. The KEEI also called the construction of power plants operated by coal, petroleum or gas “unrealistic.” Building a power plant operated on soft coal costs an enormous amount of money, since it requires the construction of facilities for the import and storage of the fuel resource, while building a power plant run by stone coal is the most expensive investment per kilowatt, it said.

In the case of petroleum or gas power plants, the fuel resources are so expensive that even South Korea uses them only as a supplementary energy generator. According to the KEEI, the provision of electricity of 2 million kw across the border is not economically feasible, since it would cost W1.10 trillion (US$1=W926), and it is questionable whether the North will accept the measure, since that means relying on the South for half of its electricity consumption. The institute said upgrading the North’s current obsolete power facilities and reducing electricity losses in the process of supply there would be a better way to help North Korea resolve the energy crisis.

(englishnews@chosun.com )