Amendment to Notification Regarding Designation of National Core Technologies

On March 14, 2024, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (the “MOTIE”) issued proposed amendments to the “Notification Regarding Designation of National Core Technologies” (MOTIE Notice 2024-241, the “Amendments”). The Amendments went into effect on July 5, 2024, after the collection of public comments closed on April 4, 2024. Under the Amendments, (i) four technologies in three fields (i.e., nuclear power, machinery and automobile/railway) were newly designated as national core technologies, (ii) three technologies in the field of nuclear power were removed, and (iii) modifications were made to 24 technologies in eight fields to reflect the current technological status.

Under the Act on Prevention of Divulgence and Protection of Industrial Technology (the “Industrial Technology Act” or “ITA”), companies that hold national core technologies (“NCTs”) are required to implement protective measures, including establishing secured areas and obtaining approval from or reporting to the Minister of the MOTIE before exporting NCTs. Additionally, foreigners seeking to acquire or merge with enterprises that hold NCTs must seek approval from or report to the Minister of the MOTIE.

The Amendments expand the previous list of 75 technologies in 13 fields to 76 technologies in 13 fields. A more detailed review of the newly designated, removed or modified NCTs is as follows.

1.	New Designations (Proposed): Four Technologies Four additional technologies in three fields (i.e., two in nuclear power, one in machinery and one in automobile/railway) have been newly added to the NCT list due to their technological advantage and high growth potential.

Field	NCT Name
Nuclear Power (2)	Rubber-based seismic isolation device technology for reducing excessive seismic forces in nuclear power plant structure design Technology to improve resistance of TRISO-SiC nuclear fuel to high pressure sintering and high temperature oxidation
Machinery (1)	Hydrogen turbine design, fabrication, and testing technologies for power generation
Automobile/Railway (1)	Design, analysis, and manufacturing of high-speed rail vehicle bodies

2.	Removed: Three Technologies Three nuclear technologies have been removed from the NCT list because they have become widely known or generally available in the industry.

Field	NCT Name
Nuclear Power (3)	Nuclear power plant passive auxiliary water system technology Remote visual inspection technology for the secondary steam generator of nuclear power plants New light-water reactor power control system technology

Modifications: 24 Technologies

To better define the scope of protected technologies, the technology names have been clarified/revised or the related criteria have been enhanced for 24 technologies in eight fields, including the semiconductor, electrical and electronic, automobile and railway, steel, shipbuilding, space, machinery, and robotics fields.

The Amendments to the Notification Regarding Designation of National Core Technologies added new NCTs and modified their specifications. We recommend companies to review whether they hold NCTs under the revised rules and the scope of any NCTs they may hold. If companies do hold NCTs, it is crucial to ensure that adequate protective measures are in place and that NCTs are not inadvertently exported without the necessary regulatory approval or reporting.

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Professionals

Professionals

Field	Prior NCT Name	Revised NCT Name
Semiconductor (1)	Design, process, and device technologies which correspond to 30 nm or less, or stacked 3D NAND flash	Design, process, and device technologies which correspond to 64 layers or more of stacked 3D NAND Flash
Electrical and Electronics (2)	Design, manufacturing, and process technologies of cathode materials with more than 80% Ni content for lithium secondary batteries	Design, manufacturing, and process technologies of cathode materials (including precursors) with more than 80% Ni content for lithium secondary batteries
Electrical and Electronics (2)	Design, process, manufacturing, and evaluation technologies for ultra-high performance electrodes of 600 mAh/g or more, or solid electrolyte based lithium secondary batteries	Design, process, manufacturing and evaluation technologies for next-generation lithium secondary batteries (including ultra-high performance electrodes of 600 mAh/g or more)
Automobile/Railway (3)	Design and manufacturing technologies for diesel engine fuel injection apparatus, super charger system, and exhaust gas post-treatment apparatus of EURO 6 emission standards or higher (limited to DPF, SCR)	Design and manufacturing technologies for diesel engine fuel injection systems, super charger system, and exhaust gas post-treatment systems, of EURO 6 emission standards or higher
	Design and manufacturing technologies for power system of high-speed train with speed of 350 km/h or higher (limited to AC induction motor, TDCS control and diagnosis, and main power converting device technology)	Design and manufacturing technologies for high-speed rail vehicle power system and control diagnostics (limited to traction motor, main power inverter, bogie, and vehicle control system technology)
	Design and manufacturing technologies for core components and systems for autonomous vehicles (limited to camera systems, radar systems, lidar systems, and high-precision positioning systems)	Design and manufacturing technologies for core parts and systems of autonomous vehicles (but limited to camera systems, radar systems, lidar systems, and precision positioning systems within three years of commercialization)
Steel (3)	Manufacturing technology of iron bar/section steel with yield strength of 600 MPa or higher (limited to products manufactured by electrical furnace with low-carbon steel (0.4% C or less))	Manufacturing technology of iron bar/section steel with yield strength of 700 MPa or higher and tensile strength of 650 MPa or higher (limited to products manufactured by the electrical furnace method with low carbon steel (0.4% C or less))
	Manufacturing technology for TWIP steel containing manganese for high-processing (more than 10% manganese)	Manufacturing technology for alloy steel containing manganese for high-processing (more than 10% manganese)
	AI-based ultra-precise plating control technology (0.1 μm resolution level)	Ultra-precision plating (0.1 μm resolution level) equipment and design and control technology
Shipbuilding (5)	Design technology for high-value-added ships (super-large capacity container ships, low temperature liquid tank ships, large capacity cruise ships, anti-freezing freight ships, gas fuel propulsion ships, electric propulsion ships, etc.) and ocean systems (maritime structure, maritime plant, etc.)	Design technology for high-value-added vessels (super-large capacity container ships, low temperature liquid tank ships, anti-freezing freight ships, eco-friendly fuel-powered ships, electric propulsion ships, and ocean systems (marine platform vessels, maritime structure, maritime plant, etc.)
	Design and manufacturing technologies for liquefied gas cargo tank and fuel tank	Design and manufacturing technologies for liquefied gas cargo tank and fuel tank (design, manufacture, maintenance, and repair of barriers, insulation systems and pump towers)
	Block mounting and on-land ship/maritime structure building technology for 3,000 tons or more ship/maritime structure	Block mounting and on-land ship/maritime structure building technology for 3,000 tons or more ship/maritime structure (degree management, safety control, and connection control technology)
	Technology for autonomous navigation (economical navigation, safe navigation, etc.), automated navigation, and integrated control system for ships	Technology for autonomous navigation (situational awareness, intelligent navigation, digital bridge and integrated platform, onboard and off board communication and security, etc.) and integrated control system for ships
	Manufacturing technology for fuel supply devices of ships with gas fuel propulsion, for re-liquefaction and re-gasification devices, etc.	Design, processing and manufacturing technologies for transport of green (low or zero-carbon) fuel and for fuel supply devices of ships with gas fuel propulsion, cargo operation systems, re-liquefaction and re-gasification devices, etc.
Space (2)	Design technology for high speed activation precision attitude control system of ultra-high resolution (50 cm level at 500 km altitude) optical satellite	Design technology for high speed activation precision attitude control system of ultra-high resolution (50 cm or lower level at 500 km altitude) optical satellite and determination technology)
Space (2)	Assembly, alignment, and inspection technologies for satellite electro-optical cameras with an internal diameter of 1 m or greater	Production and assembly technologies for satellite electro-optical cameras with an internal diameter of 1 m or greater
Machine (5)	Reliability design and manufacturing technologies for medium and heavy excavators	Reliability design and manufacturing technologies for 20-ton class and above medium and heavy excavators
	Design technology for off-road diesel engine and post-processing system of Tier 4F emission standards	Design technology for off-road industrial diesel engine and post-processing system of Tier 4F Stage-V emission standards
	Design and manufacturing technologies for load-sensing hydraulic type transmission for tractors	Design and manufacturing technologies for load-sensing automatic transmission for tractors
	Technology of high-efficiency turbo compressor working with low global warming potential (“GWP”) refrigerants	Technology for oil-free turbo compressor based industrial high temperature heat pumps working with low global warming potential (“GWP”) refrigerants
	Design and operation technologies for human-friendly elevator system with low vibration, reduced noise, and dynamic stability	Human-friendly ultra-high speed elevator design and operation technology
Robot (3)	Design and manufacturing technologies for laparoscope, endoscope, and image guided surgical robot system	Design, manufacturing, and control technologies for laparoscope, endoscope, and image guided surgical robot system
	Operation and control technologies of robots for high-density procedure operation where work spaces are shared	Software technologies for operation of multi-manufacturing robots where work spaces are shared
	Robot integrated control technology based on video surveillance	Integrated control technology for multi-mobile robots based on video surveillance