Meralco: Nuke plants feasible

The Manila Electric Co. has identified three sites across its franchise area where it may be feasible to construct small nuclear power plants to supplement local power sources.

Meralco EVP and COO Ronnie L. Aperocho revealed that a recent pre-feasibility study commissioned by the company indicated that Talim Island in Rizal province; San Rafael, Bulacan; and Isla del Provisor in the city of Manila could be potential sites for micro-modular reactors, or MMR.

"We have already started the pre-feasibility study, except for the critical part because some sites identified by the Department of Energy are outside the Meralco franchise area. Since this is a Meralco undertaking, we want to have them (the plants) within our franchise area," Aperocho told reporters.

MMR familiarization

"We have to show that across our franchise area, nuclear plants can be safely installed, and our customers will have nothing to worry about. In case there would be issues, (we will see) if it can be compensated by an underground structural design," he added.

Aperocho said Meralco had already bought the locations where they planned to construct the nuclear plants.

He added that many industry players have also reached out to Meralco to offer their nuclear development expertise.

Meralco has a cooperative agreement with US-based Ultra Safe Nuclear Corp., or USNC, to explore areas in the country where MMRs may be built.

The cooperative agreement calls for USNC to conduct a four-month pre-feasibility study to familiarize  Meralco with MMR systems and how they can be effectively used in the Philippines.

Under the deal, Meralco may also conduct a more comprehensive feasibility study on adopting and deploying MMR energy systems, depending on the pre-feasibility study results.

If this development comes to fruition, Meralco will be the first domestic energy company to introduce controversial nuclear power into local areas — a move supporting the government's efforts to diversify its energy portfolio.

Integrating nuclear power into the main grid is expected to be lengthy, as stipulated by the DoE itself. This is mainly due to the absence of a governing law that can help regulate the local nuclear industry.

Energy Undersecretary Sharon Garin recently disclosed that a National Roadmap for Nuclear Power is being developed. This roadmap aims to create a well-structured nuclear policy that would enable the seamless integration of nuclear power into the main grid by 2032.

The government has supported exploring nuclear power as an energy source in line with the global push to reduce fossil fuel use due to its hazardous carbon emissions.

Nuclear energy could potentially energize small islands through small modular nuclear power plants, especially in areas not connected to the main grid.