The Department of Energy (DOE) eyes building a nuclear power plant by 2032 to address the insufficient supply of electricity in the country.
In an interview during Damdaming Bayan on Monday, June 3, DOE Assistant Secretary Mario Marasigan said the Philippines should meet the requirements of the International Atomic Energy Agency in building nuclear power plants.
"Kasama po sa ating programa ang pag-aaral ng posibleng pagtatayo ng nuclear energy power plant sa bansa. May mga nakatutok na unit para mabigyan ng sapat na panahon ang pag-aaral dito," said Marasigan.
"Sa atin pong pagtantya, nakikita po sana natin na magkaroon ng nuclear power plant by 2032. So dapat po makapaghanda na tayo pati po ang regulation at safety. Kailangan po natin matugunan ang requirements ng International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)," he added.
Among the regulations of the IAEA, according to Morales, are the 19 infrastructure requirements before building the power plant, public sector consultation, and approval of the community where the power plants will be built.
Morales said the DOE is currently studying the development of nuclear power plants with the Senate.
It can be recalled that on Saturday, a rotating power outage in Luzon was experienced due to a red alert.
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— NGCP (@NGCP_ALERT) June 1, 2024
𝐀𝐃𝐕𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐑𝐘: NGCP may implement Manual Load Dropping (MLD) in the following areas today, 01 June, to maintain the integrity of the power system.
𝟓:𝟎𝟎𝐏𝐌-𝟔:𝟎𝟎𝐏𝐌
LUECO (parts of La Union)
INEC (parts of Ilocos Norte)
CAGELCO II (parts of Cagayan and Apayao) pic.twitter.com/vWKR3lDZ5c
According to Meralco, almost 2 million customers in parts of Batangas, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Metro Manila, Pampanga, Rizal, and Quezon had been affected by the power interruptions.
Meanwhile, Morales said no red alert was issued as of today, but a yellow alert status will be placed in Luzon Grid, which will take effect from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 10 p.m..
A yellow alert is issued when the operating margin is insufficient to meet the transmission grid’s contingency requirement. while a red alert is issued when the power supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand and the transmission grid’s regulatory requirements.
"Sa ngayon po, mayroon po tayong 16 na planta na naka-forced outage. Kasama po rito ang epekto ng El Niño. Mayroon pa pong 6 na derated, hindi makapagsuplay ng kuryente na naaayon sa kapasidad ng planta," said Marasigan.
