THINK tank Center for Energy Sustainability and Economics (Cese) said on Wednesday the Philippine government seems to be acting fast on developing a nuclear-energy program.
In a statement, Cese said the Philippines would be hosting the Nuclear Power Forum 2010 to discuss key drivers in nuclear energy, such as cheap electricity and low carbon emissions.
Cese added that representatives from the International Atomic Energy Agency, International Energy Agency, World Association of Nuclear Operators, Philippine Interagency Core Group on Nuclear Energy, National Power Corp., Philippine Nuclear Research Institute, National Institute of Geological Sciences and the 15th Congress of the Philippines are expected to attend the Nuclear Power Forum Philippines 2010 to be held at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza on December 10.
Cese said a site tour to the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) would be held on December 11. The BNPP—mothballed by the administration of President Corazon Aquino in 1986 for so-called safety issues—is the only fully built nuclear-power plant in the Asean region.
Meanwhile, in a separate press release, Cese said San Miguel Corp. (SMC) is willing to rehabilitate the BNPP for baseload and join all biddings for the government’s infrastructure projects, specifically the ones included in the Private-Public Partnership list.
“We will join the bidding. We are willing to acquire power assets,” Cese quoted Ramon Ang, president of SMC.
SMC has diversified its food assets into other businesses. Eighty percent of its cash flow is now from nonfood assets. San Miguel is now the biggest power producer in the Philippines, making it a strong contender for Philippine nuclear-power projects.
At the same time, a British uranium supplier will fly to Manila on December 10 to pitch its nuclear-fuel supply technology, which enriches uranium to provide fuel for nuclear power-plant utilities. Enrichment is a growing technology that ensures a safer and more reliable fuel supply.
Russia and the US are also strongly positioning themselves in Southeast Asia’s nuclear energy. Recently, an American-based engineering company has proposed to build a nuclear power plant in the Philippines, proposing solutions to address the Philippines’ specific geological situation. Technologies such as small modular reactors and the Russian VVER are being put on the agenda.
Frank Mercado, Cese director, said they are overwhelmed by the response as investor interest continues to pour in.
“Indeed, Southeast Asia is now an important emerging market for the nuclear industry worldwide,” he said.
Mercado said companies from the United Kingdom, France, the United States, Canada, Russia, China, Korea and Japan are sending teams to the Philippines to meet with key decision-makers and local partners.
Services that increase efficiency, manage or reprocess waste fuel, ensure on-time within-budget project management, and key needs such as fuel, cables and other equipment, are all in demand as the Philippines joins its Asean neighbors in the Asian nuclear-power renaissance, with over $50 billion already earmarked across the Southeast Asian grouping for nuclear-power development.
Cese quoted Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras as saying that the power-supply crunch is at the top of his marching orders from President Aquino.
“The plan is to move as fast as we can, as soon as we can. Our plan is to try to do whatever we can to encourage more investments in the energy sector,” the energy chief said.
The Nuclear Power Forum is the only government-business forum for leaders in Asian nuclear-power development, featuring case studies and high-level panel discussions on sustainable development of nuclear technology for peaceful energy use.
Cese said the meeting, which includes CEOs and directors from major international and local industry players, seeks to address current opportunities and challenges in nuclear power development in the country and in Southeast Asia.
A full-day power forum will be followed by a site tour at the BNPP where the attending executives and government officials can go offsite to explore the Asean’s first nuclear-plant and cement partnerships and contracts to move forward effectively, securely and safely.
Cese added that the discussion aims to address an urgent power-generation gap that is already impacting the Philippine economy with rotating three-hour outages in Metro Manila, the country’s political and economic center.
The Philippine Energy Plan 2007-2014 indicates room for the BNPP, as well as four more nuclear plants, the earliest to be commissioned by 2015.
Candidate sites are being checked across the country: in Palawan, Cagayan, Cavite, Negros Oriental, Zamboanga del Norte, Bataan, Negros Occidental, Quezon, Batangas and Sarangani.
Cebu has also opened its doors for a new nuclear power plant.
Nuclear power is expected to provide about 3,000-megawatt (MW) in generation capacity for the Philippines, with total capacity building planned at 15,000-MW overall by 2018.
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