Revival of nuclear power plans seen

The Philippines’ readiness for a national nuclear energy program may revive plans to build nuclear power plants in the country, with 13 potential sites spread out across the archipelago.

According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the Department of Energy has had only one comprehensive plan—since it was created in 1992—that included nuclear as a long-term option for a source of electricity supply.

This was the Philippine Energy Plan 1998-2035, which the government adopted amid the power supply crisis of the 1990s.

Back in 1998, the DOE envisioned that a 600-MW nuclear power plant—other than the 620-MW one in Bataan that was mothballed and never put into operation—would have been built and running by 2025.

After that, three additional nuclear facilities at 600 MW each were planned for completion in 2027, 2030 and 2034. Each power plant was slated for a 10-year construction period.

This plan, if it were implemented, would have provided the Philippines a total of 2,400 MW of nuclear power capacity.

Also, the government through a nuclear power steering committee identified 13 potential sites for future nuclear power plants.

These include Mapalan Point in Morong, Bataan; San Juan, Batangas; Padre Burgos, Quezon; Port Irene and Rakat Hill in Cagayan; Palicpican in Ternate, Cavite; Tagbarungis in Inagauan, Palawan and Concepcion in Tanabag, Palawan.

There were also potential sites in Baluangan in Cauayan, Negros Oriental; Cansilan Point in Bayawan, Negros Occidental, and Talusan Point in Sipalay, Negros Occidental.