A forum exploring the business potential of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) era will be held.
An SMR special session is scheduled to take place on the 'Open Stage' at 'Smart Energy Plus (SEP) 2026,' which will be held on Oct. 28 in Hall B of COEX in Seoul Samsung-dong. 'SEP 2026' is an event co-hosted by Money Today and COEX, and organized by the National Assembly Hydrogen Economy Forum.
The session was established with the purpose of examining the potential of SMRs as a power source for AI data centers. An SMR is a reactor with an electrical output of 300 megawatts (MWe) or less. Construction costs are one-thirtieth that of large-scale nuclear power plants, and the probability of a severe accident is only about once every billion years. Because it combines safety, economic efficiency, and practicality, it is being cited as a power source for AI data centers.
During the session, Yoo Hyeong-geun, Team Leader of the Energy Solution Business Division at SK Innovation, will present on 'Next-generation SMRs opened by K-Natrium'; Jeon Dae-sik, Won Jeon-gi-sul (Team Lead) of the Energy Solution Business Department at Samsung C&T, will present on 'Construction modularization in preparation for SMRs'; Jung Jae-wook, Team Leader of ETF Management 3 at Samsung Asset Management, will present on 'The era of SMR investment opened by AI data centers'; Lee Kang-heon, CEO of RX, will present on 'Decarbonized industrial heat supply strategy through the development of light-water reactor heat-supply SMRs'; and Jang In-sook, Head of the SMR Safety Division at the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, will present on 'New applications of SMRs and challenges in safety regulation.'
This brings together figures from business planning, construction, investment, venture, and government sectors surrounding SMRs. SK Innovation has been focusing on the SMR business since joining as a major shareholder by investing a total of 250 million dollars in TerraPower, a U.S. nuclear power company founded by Bill Gates, along with SK Inc. Samsung C&T is pioneering new markets, having recently agreed to an investment and engineering cooperation deal worth up to 100 million dollars with Kairos Power, a U.S.-based SMR developer.
Samsung Asset Management considers SMR companies promising investment targets and newly listed ETFs such as 'KODEX US Nuclear SMR' and 'KODEX K-Nuclear SMR' last year. RX, a leading domestic SMR venture company, is developing the light-water reactor heat-supply SMR 'RX-50' in a consortium with the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, and recently attracted attention by securing early-stage investment of 10 billion won.
Following the presentations, a discussion session will take place where opinions will be exchanged on topics including the business potential and commercialization timing of SMRs, global trends, differentiation points from other energy sources, and directions for institutional supplementation. The special session is expected to provide insight into whether SMRs can become a 'tangible future power source.'
Meanwhile, 'SEP 2026' will be held in Hall B of COEX from the 28th to the 30th. This year's themes are 'Energy Transformation in the AI Era' and 'Energy Security Amid Rapidly Changing International Conditions.' The Army Energy Policy Forum will begin at 1 p.m. on the 28th. From the 29th to the 30th, senior executives from Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, Hyundai Motor, LG Electronics, POSCO, Bright Energy Partners, LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI, SK On, HD Hyundai Electric, and OCI Power will deliver lectures.
The three-day exhibition will feature booths from companies including LG Group, HD Hyundai Electric, Doosan Enerbility, and Yuneec, as well as institutional investors such as the Army, Seoul City, the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, the Korea Machinery Research Institute, the Korea Institute of Energy Technology, the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute, the Korea Chemical Research Institute, the Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, the Korea Construction Technology Institute, and the Technology Guarantee Fund.
In a separately prepared mobility zone, visitors can check the competitiveness of electric and hydrogen vehicles from Hyundai Motor, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Porsche, and Polestar. Hyundai Rotem will create a space where visitors can experience a hydrogen fuel cell tram through Virtual Reality (VR).
in INDUSTRY
