[ad_1]
The possible operation of the suspended nuclear power plant in Bataan may depend on the feelings of the people living in the province.
President Rodrigo R. Duterte ordered a public consultation on the Department of Energy (DOE) proposal for the government to finally operate the facility.
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque made the statement, when he recently met with the Secretary of Energy, Alfonso Cusi, and Congressman Mark Cojuangco, on the possibility of the country making use of nuclear energy.
“The president said it is necessary to study the proposal and bring it to the ground level and ask the people of Bataan if they want it,” Roque said at a news conference in Bataan.
Built during the tenure of former President Ferdinand Marcos, the multi-billion dollar facility was never used and was left in shambles after the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster.
Interest in using the Bataan nuclear power plant was rekindled in 2018 to help address the country’s growing energy needs.
Last July, Duterte issued Executive Order No. 116, which created the inter-institutional committee led by the DOE, which conducts a “pre-feasibility study” on the viability of the use of nuclear energy in the country and drafts the National Nuclear Energy Program. (NEP).
Also part of the Committee’s responsibility is to study existing facilities, which can be used for NEP such as, among others, the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant.
