Philippine energy chief says to draft plan for nuclear programme

MANILA, Oct 30 (Reuters) - The Philippines will prepare a
detailed plan for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
on how it could embark on a nuclear power programme, its energy
chief said on Wednesday, backing a push for the country to tap
nuclear energy.
"We are set to meet with the IAEA next month to discuss
further collaboration efforts," Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi
said, after receiving an IAEA review report on the
infrastructure the country would need for a nuclear programme.
"This is the beginning of a new phase of work because we
have to prepare now our plan of action and we are going to
present it to them, to IAEA, and they are going to audit us,"
Cusi said.
The Department of Energy has been studying the use of
nuclear power, a divisive issue in the Philippines due to safety
concerns. It has drafted an executive order, which is awaiting
President Rodrigo Duterte's signature, outlining a national
policy to support its plan.
Duterte has said safety will be his top consideration in
deciding whether the country will pursue nuclear energy.
Cusi said Duterte "wants to learn more" about nuclear
energy.
Nuclear power is seen as a potential answer to the
Philippines' twin problems of precarious supply and the high
cost of electricity, although Cusi said other options were also
being considered.
"We are looking at all sources of energy. We're studying
hydrogen," he said. "We are hungry for power and we will tap any
sources that would satisfy our own needs now."
Supporters of Cusi's nuclear energy push say that because
the fuel cost is lower, electricity rates will drop. But those
against it cite a reliance on imported uranium, high waste
disposal and decomissioning costs, as well as safety issues.
If it decides to tap nuclear energy, the Philippines could
either build new facilities or rehabilitate its Bataan Nuclear
Power Plant, built in the 1980s but mothballed after a change in
the country's leadership and the devastating Chernobyl disaster.
Cusi said the government is also looking at deploying small
modular nuclear plants to some of the country's islands still
suffering from power shortage.
The government recently signed a memorandum of understanding
with Russian state atomic company Rosatom involving a
pre-feasibility study for such plants, he said.