On March 11, 2026, a delegation from the Finance Committee of the Parliament of Finland visited KAERI. 

The visit was arranged for Finland to learn about the current status of Korea’s nuclear R&D and to explore possible areas for future cooperation. The Finance Committee plays a key role in the Finnish Parliament, overseeing national budget planning and allocation, and discussing issues such as investments in Finland’s energy system and related tax policies.

During the meeting, the two sides discussed potential cooperation in various areas, including advanced reactors, nuclear energy policies, and spent nuclear fuel management.

The Finnish delegation introduced the current status of nuclear power in Finland and the progress of the Onkalo repository for spent nuclear fuel, as well as government policies for carbon neutrality and plans to introduce SMRs for district heating. KAERI also presented the current status and future plans of Korea’s nuclear R&D, including reactor types under development such as SMART100, SFR (Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor), MSR (Molten Salt Reactor), and HTGR (High-Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor).

President Han Gyu Joo welcomed Finland’s active use of large-scale nuclear power and spent nuclear fuel management. He emphasized that nuclear energy will be an essential energy source in the future, not only for electricity generation but also for heat production and other applications. He also expressed hope that nuclear power will continue to develop in Finland to support carbon neutrality and that cooperation in nuclear R&D between the two countries will expand in the future.

The Head of the Delegation Saara Hyrkkö thanked KAERI for the detailed introduction to Korea’s nuclear sector. The delegation noted that nuclear energy is becoming increasingly important and expressed expectations that bilateral cooperation between Finland and Korea in the nuclear field, including SMR development, will continue to expand.