The government should quickly review plans to build additional nuclear reactors to meet rapidly growing electricity demand from semiconductor manufacturing complexes and artificial intelligence (AI) data centers, Minister of Climate, Energy and Environment Kim Sung-hwan said Friday. Kim said the issue needs to be addressed as soon as possible because the government plans to finalize its 12th basic plan for long-term electricity supply and demand ahead of the regular parliamentary session later this year. "Semiconductor production requires a stable supply of electricity around the clock, making it similar to a baseload power source," Kim said in an interview with MBC Radio. "It will not be easy to meet the growing demand with renewable energy alone, so we need to promptly examine whether additional nuclear reactors should be built." Kim said the semiconductor clusters planned in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, and the southwestern region of the country will require electricity equivalent to the output of about 15 nuclear reactors with a capacity of 1.4 gigawatts each. Regarding potential sites