Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon says he expects North Korea to accept the government's offer of electricity assistance.

Speaking to a local radio program Thursday, Ban downplayed concern over the North's possible rejection due to its fear of a permanent power reliance on South Korea, citing North Korean leader Kim Jong-il’s promise to seriously consider the idea.

On a multilateral guarantee on the electricity assistance, he said parties to the six-way nuclear talks can discuss Pyongyang’s possible concern over a stable supply of power.

For the light-water reactor project in the North, Ban said the two Koreas could use the facilities built so far in future joint ventures on energy cooperation.

But he added Seoul will scrap the project if Pyongyang accepts the government's offer of two million kilowatts a year.

The reactor project was one-third complete before coming to a halt in 2003 after the North claimed to have a uranium-based nuclear weapons program.

South Korea has already spent 1.1 billion dollars in the 4.6 billion dollar project.