(REUTERS) — Philippine energy officials on Friday (September 16) held a tour inside the country’s only nuclear plant which was built four decades ago but never used, as they look into its revival to address the growing power shortage.
Former Philippine president and dictator Ferdinand Marcos built a 620-megawatt nuclear plant in Bataan province, northwest of Manila, in 1976 in response to rising energy prices, but it was never opened due to safety hazards and concerns that it was constructed on top of a fault line.
Officials took journalists and some lawmakers inside the $2 billion plant and showed its control room and nuclear reactor.
One of the energy department’s engineers said the revival of the plant can have long-term benefits in the Philippines’ power sector.
He allayed fears on its revival, citing their initial reviews on its potential operability.
“There’s no truth that there’s a fault line and if there’s a fault line then, we did a very thorough site investigation report and we didn’t find any fault,” said Mauro Marcelo, the engineer from the energy department.
Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi previously said the revival of the mothballed plant will require a $1 billion investment and will require a team of experts who can upgrade the outdated facility, though there was no timetable on its execution.
The Philippines is joining more than two dozen other countries looking to add nuclear power to their energy mix, including neighbours Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand.
Nuclear power is one of the options for the Philippines to meet its growing power needs, with annual electricity demand expected to rise by an average 5 percent until 2030, the energy department said.
Activists have opposed the revival of the nuclear plants in the past, citing its environmental impact and safety concerns for the villagers living near the facility.
