Cojuangco, nuclear advocates oppose Bataan plant privatization

Pangasinan Second District Representative Mark Cojuangco and nuclear energy advocacy group Alpas Pinas called for the revival, rather than privatization, of the Philippine Nuclear Power Plant (PNPP), following the government's consideration of privatizing the Bataan-based facility.

Cojuangco, chairperson of the House Special Committee on Nuclear Energy, said during a press briefing on Friday that the government already has 100 percent ownership of the PNPP, questioning the need to privatize the facility.

“The government already owns 100 percent of the [PNPP] in Bataan. [This includes] controlling and government ownership,” he said.

“If nuclear energy and the operation of the [PNPP] in Bataan provide benefits, should these not accrue to the people rather than become profits for a private company?” Cojuangco added.

He questioned why a private company should benefit from the nuclear power plant when Filipinos funded its construction and the public had waited four decades to benefit from its operation.

“I think that is wrong, which is why I oppose it. I want this plant to remain under public ownership so that the people can benefit from the [services] of this plant,” Cojuangco said.

“All the earnings of this plant could go toward the construction of a second nuclear power plant, just like in Korea,” the congressman added, citing how Korea started with two nuclear power plants, added two more to make four, and eventually expanded its fleet to eight.

Privatization of PNPP

Cojuangco, however, stressed that if the Filipino people are concerned about the government's capacity to operate the PNPP, the construction, operation, and maintenance of the plant could be put up for bidding among private companies, provided they can prove their competence in operating a nuclear power plant.

However, he also raised concerns about the private sector's handling of the country's electricity supply.

“It has been over decades since the private sector was given the opportunity to lower electricity prices and ensure a reliable supply. “We should not be experiencing red and yellow grid alerts by now.” the congressman said, noting that the country continues to face an electricity supply shortage.

Cojuangco said that if the country wants to have a chance at lowering electricity prices, the PNPP should remain under public ownership and be operated for the benefit of the Filipino people, despite the four decades of waiting for the plant to become operational.

He noted that the country could borrow USD14 billion to rehabilitate the PNPP and build additional AP1000 reactors, increasing its total capacity from 620 megawatts to 4,070 megawatts.

“That would be a major solution to our electricity supply shortage,” Cojuangco said.

Nuclear energy advocate plea

Alpas Pinas, a non-profit organization that promotes nuclear energy as a clean and sustainable source of power, expressed support for reviving the country's nuclear power plant in Bataan as a way to address high electricity costs and insufficient power supply.

“We really need nuclear energy because this is our way out of the persistent poverty that we are experiencing,” Alpas Pinas lead convenor Gayle Certeza said, stressing the need for clean, affordable, and reliable electricity.

The nuclear energy advocate cited data showing that nuclear power plants operate at full capacity about 92 percent of the time, ensuring a steady electricity supply, compared with solar power plants, which have an average capacity factor of only 15 percent due to their dependence on sunlight and weather conditions.

She also highlighted that nuclear energy ranks among the lowest in terms of accident rates, air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions compared with other energy sources.

“According to science, nuclear [energy] is actually the safest and the cleanest of all fuel sources,” Certeza pointed out.

She said the country is facing an electricity supply shortage as demand for power continues to grow, adding that nuclear energy is one of the options that could help address the situation.

Certeza also compared electricity prices in the Philippines with those in other Asian countries, citing an average rate of P13 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in the Philippines, compared with approximately P3 per kWh in Malaysia, P4 per kWh in Vietnam, and P7 per kWh in South Korea, when converted into Philippine pesos.

The Alpas Pinas convenor noted that the PNPP could generate 3,950 megawatts of baseload electricity if recommissioned within four to five years, describing it as the fastest route for the Philippines to become a nuclear energy-producing country.

Certeza stressed that the Philippines had fallen behind its neighboring countries that pursued nuclear power, citing Japan, which began construction of its nuclear power plant in 1967 and started operations in 1971, and South Korea, which began construction in 1971 and commenced operations in 1978.

Meanwhile, construction of the PNPP began in 1976 and was completed in 1984, which Certeza said should have made the Philippines the first country in Southeast Asia to have a nuclear power plant.

The group, however, opposed the privatization of the PNPP, stressing that the country's nuclear power plant should not be put up for sale and that its benefits should instead go to the Filipino people through government ownership and operation.