Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi delivering speech virtually at the opening session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Scientific Forum on Sept. 22, 2020 (Photo courtesy of DOE)
MANILA – Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Alfonso Cusi said the Philippines is on its journey to explore the potentials of nuclear power as a reliable source of energy.
In his speech delivered virtually during the opening session of the two-day International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Scientific Forum Tuesday in Vienna, Austria, Cusi said it is the right time for the Philippines to embark on a full national nuclear energy program.
“For the country like the Philippines, Covid-19’s onslaught has revealed that energy systems could be interrupted. This has underscored the urgency of attaining our energy security and sustainability goals. We, at the Philippines’ Department of Energy, have been continuously advocating for the responsible development and utilization of all energy resources, including nuclear under the technology neutral policy that we have adopted,” he said.
The DOE chief said the Philippines was one of the first Southeast Asian countries to embark on a nuclear energy program with the creation of the Philippine Atomic Energy Commission in 1958, and hosted the region’s only nuclear power plant, the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP), in the 1980s.
Cusi recalled that the BNPP was mothballed due to unfounded allegations of corruption and widespread safety concerns on the nuclear power facility.
He also expressed regret as the country was not able to seize the opportunity to harness nuclear energy at that time.
“I firmly believe that our country’s economic landscape would be much different had we tapped nuclear power back then. Instead, our economic development was stunted, whereas our regional neighbors who had boldly ventured towards nuclear, had all been transformed into economic powerhouses,” Cusi said.
But the Philippines now has the chance to “rewrite its nuclear journey” after President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the creation of an inter-agency committee to study the feasibility of introducing nuclear power in the country’s energy mix, the DOE chief added.
Cusi said the new Nuclear Energy Program Inter-Agency Committee will do collaborative work with the IAEA towards the realization of the country’s nuclear energy program.
In a recent report, Fitch Solutions said nuclear power will offer an effective solution for the Philippines to meet its rising power demand.
Fitch Solutions has seen power consumption in the Philippines to increase by an average of 4.6 percent from 2020 to 2029 despite the near-term headwinds due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to the DOE, the country’s power requirement will reach 43,765 megawatts by 2040. (PNA)
