South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT has proposed a record ₩733.6 billion ($545.1 million) energy technology research and development budget for 2027, up 48% from this year and 2.4 times the 2024 level after R&D cuts under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration. The increase reflects growing concern that electricity supply for artificial intelligence data centers will become a core national competitiveness issue. Nuclear R&D would receive a record ₩386.4 billion, including ₩127.5 billion for small modular reactors (SMRs), while nuclear fusion funding would more than double to ₩284 billion and renewable energy funding would rise 64% to ₩21.5 billion. The three areas are among the government’s seven SEED projects. Lawmaker Hwang Jung-a said energy technology is a national strategic asset and called for investment that can strengthen resilience against external shocks, including conflicts in the Middle East. Existing assessments caution that SMRs and fusion will not meet near-term electricity demand because commercial viability is expected only in the early 2030s and after the 2040s, respectively, increasing the importance of immediately deployable renewable energy and energy storage systems.