DOE has yet to see bid to build nuclear power plant

SAN MANUEL, Pangasinan – With all talk about harnessing nuclear energy, Energy Secretary Sharon Garin said no company has yet submitted a proposal to build a nuclear power plant in the country.

Garin said the Department of Energy (DOE) has already identified and assessed several potential sites that can host such facilities in the country.

Garin, who attended the inauguration of the 92-megawatt San Manuel Solar Power Plant here on Tuesday, said the country has an adequate power supply but still needs a more balanced energy mix that includes reliable baseload sources such as nuclear power or other appropriate technologies.

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READ: Reclamation projects, nuclear plant revival ‘top threats to PH environment’

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“We still need to improve our energy mix so that it becomes more efficient. With solar, for example, like now when it’s raining, it doesn’t generate power. So there have to be other sources to compensate and balance the system while keeping electricity costs as low as possible,” she said.

Sean Chen, chief project development and execution officer of Aboitiz Power, said the San Manuel Solar Power Plant has a peak capacity of 92 megawatts but output can drop to around 40 megawatts during cloudy weather or periods of heavy rainfall.

Garin said the DOE’s role is not to build power plants but to evaluate whether proposed locations are suitable for energy facilities, including nuclear power plants.

“We examine factors such as whether an area is prone to earthquakes, whether there are nearby fault lines, whether it is vulnerable to flooding, and other similar considerations. We have already assessed Labrador, Bataan, Palawan, and several other areas,” she said.

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She said the DOE uses a scoring system to evaluate prospective sites and has already identified possible locations based on their technical and environmental characteristics.

“However, I don’t think there is any proposal yet from a company willing to build a nuclear power plant. We have not received any such proposal so far,” she added.

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Garin said Labrador town in western Pangasinan received a favorable rating as a potential site based on criteria used by scientists and technical experts in evaluating locations for nuclear facilities.

“We have a technical team that conducts fieldwork and on-site assessments. There is a thorough evaluation process. There are still some issues that need to be addressed, so it’s not a perfect site, but it remains on the list of possible locations,” she said. INQ /mr

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