Pressed to look for new energy sources as economic growth pushes up demand, the Duterte administration is seen harnessing the long-idle $2-billion nuclear plant in Bataan.
Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi, appearing before the Senate’s Energy Committee, confirmed the government is studying options and will “consult the people” before giving the greenlight to tap the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP), even as senators voiced misgivings about the plan.
“We will have a national nuclear policy, we will have one; and we will go through the entire process, including legislation, since this is included on the legislative agenda presented to Congress,” Cusi told reporters after the hearing, adding that upon completion of the study, he will present it first to President Duterte.
He said initial estimate to put the 620-megawatt BNPP “into operation” was pegged at $1 billion. “That is just an estimate, it’s still under study,” Cusi said.
The energy secretary said they were informed that reviving the mothballed nuclear plant in Morong, Bataan, could take two to four years. “At most, probably four years and the earliest is two years,” he said, adding that “from hereon until 2030, we will need to add around 1,100 mw per year, roughly that’s the number.”
Asked about safety issues, Cusi acknowledged concerns about faultlines in the proximity of the BNPP. “Just like in Japan, we have been discussing the issue of faultlines for more than 40 years, and I cited the lost opportunity for the long time that we have not been using the BNPP,” he said, adding: “But having said that, these are the faultlines, and there is always an engineering solution to those kind of problems, and I am sure competent expert engineers will take those into account…I am confident on the studies being made, that they will come out with a good study.”
Senate Energy Committee Chairman Win Gatchalian earlier sought caution about plans to revive the “dilapidated” BNPP, citing safety concerns and lack of technological capabilities as critical issues that come hand-in-hand with the controversial plant, which has yet to produce a single megawatt of electricity since it was completed in 1984.
Gatchalian aired his concerns after Cusi put forward the possibility of refurbishing the plant and adding nuclear power to the Philippine energy mix.
According to Gatchalian, “the BNPP is a rundown relic from an era long gone.”
“Over three decades of innovation in nuclear energy separate it from modern nuclear power plants,” he said, adding: “The $1-billion investment it would take to refurbish the plant would be better spent on more feasible generation projects.”
The senator also noted the BNPP’s precarious location atop a geological fault line would make its revival a safety hazard for the entire Luzon island group, even as he pointed to the nuclear plant’s outdated technology as a source of concern, explaining that newer power plant designs have taken into consideration the structural failures of older plants and are thus sturdier and more resistant to environmental stresses.
At this point, he said, “our country simply has not developed the necessary technical expertise to operate the BNPP or any modern nuclear power plant in a safe and cost-efficient manner.”
But Gatchalian admitted he was not ruling out nuclear energy as a future part of the country’s energy mix, provided that nuclear-energy advocates would be able to provide clear and detailed plans on how to develop nuclear energy in a safe and sustainable manner over the long term.
For his part, Sen. Joseph Victor Ejercito welcomed the move of Cusi to consider options in looking for alternative sources of power supply, including the revival of the Bataan nuclear plant. “I must admire Cusi for considering nuclear energy. Now that yellow alerts and forced outages are recurring, it is time that we think outside the box. Right now, nuclear is the cheapest source of power generation,” Ejercito said.
The senator said he had the opportunity to visit the BNPP, “and was surprised to see that it remains in good condition.”
Ejercito recalled that when President Cory Aquino assumed power in 1986, she was hesitant to use the BNPP, but nonetheless allotted an annual P50-million maintenance fund for it. “That is why up to this day, it can still be used.”
Ejercito added: “We had our last payment for the nuclear plant in 2007. It is now owned by taxpayers, by all Filipinos. Why don’t we reconsider utilizing it? It’s a $2-billion asset that is just sitting there.”
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Japan with almost 70% of its energy requirements coming from nuclear power and technological advancement could not even prevent the Fukushima disaster. The Philippines without an iota of experience in running a nuclear power plant now wants to use the idle Bataan Power Plant. The challenge is with Secretary Cusi and all those advocating its usage to man the revival and operations of this plant to see if they have the guts to do it.