Officials yesterday were at a loss to explain a mix-up by Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), who told the legislature on Tuesday that the nation’s three operational nuclear plants were “much safer” than those in Japan because they were “fourth generation” — something both Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) and the Atomic Energy Council (AEC) have said is wrong.
“The Fukushima Dai-ichi [-nuclear power] plant was equipped with a third-generation [reactor], while Taiwan’s nuclear power plants operate fourth--generation ones,” Wu told the legislature, claiming that this alone made Taiwan’s plants safer.
SIMILAR PLANTS
However, as the Taipei Times reported yesterday, fourth--generation reactors are not expected to be commercially viable for another two decades and an investigation has shown that the types of -reactors used at the Japanese plant are very similar to those in Taiwan.
Asked for comment on the discrepancy, a senior Government Information Office official who was not authorized to speak to the media said: “Wu could have made a mistake,” referring further inquiries to the AEC.
For its part, the council said Wu was either misinformed or that information was “lost in translation.”
“Perhaps it is just a misunderstanding. Perhaps the premier was referring to the boiling water reactor types and mistook them for the generation variants,” said Chang Shin (張欣), an official at the council’s Department of Nuclear Regulation.
However, another council official speaking on condition of anonymity was more forthcoming.
The units at the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant, which started running in 1971, use three types of boiling water reactors (BWR). All six reactors are second--generation variants, the officials told the Taipei Times, information that was corroborated by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency.
Similarly, the first two plants in Taiwan — both in New Taipei City (新北市) — use BWR-4 and BWR-6 reactors and are the same second-generation variant as those used at Fukushima, the official said. Taipower also confirmed that no operational nuclear plant in Taiwan uses anything newer than second--generation reactors.
THIRD PLANT
For its part, the third plant, in Pingtung County, uses another second-generation device known as a pressurized water reactor (PWR), considered safer than BWR variants.
The most modern nuclear reactor in Taiwan is found at the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant, still under construction in New Taipei City’s Gongliao District (貢寮), which uses two advanced boiling water reactors. Those are third-generation reactors.
The three operational nuclear plants in Taiwan are therefore no more advanced than the Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant, the council official said.
In fact, all but one of the reactors at the Fukushima plant are either of similar design or more advanced — in the case of reactor six, which is a BWR-5 — than those at Taiwan’s first nuclear plant, the Jinshan Nuclear Power Plant.
Beijing’s continued provocations in the Taiwan Strait reveal its intention to unilaterally change the “status quo” in the area, the US Department of State said on Saturday, calling for a peaceful resolution to cross-strait issues. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) reported that four China Coast Guard patrol vessels entered restricted and prohibited waters near Kinmen County on Friday and again on Saturday. A State Department spokesperson said that Washington was aware of the incidents, and urged all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from unilaterally changing the “status quo.” “Maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is in line with our [the
EXTENDED RANGE: Hsiung Sheng missiles, 100 of which might be deployed by the end of the year, could reach Chinese command posts and airport runways, a source said A NT$16.9 billion (US$534.93 million) project to upgrade the military’s missile defense systems would be completed this year, allowing the deployment of at least 100 long-range Hsiung Sheng missiles and providing more deterrence against China, military sources said on Saturday. Hsiung Sheng missiles are an extended-range version of the Hsiung Feng IIE (HF-2E) surface-to-surface cruise missile, and are believed to have a range of up to 1,200km, which would allow them to hit targets well inside China. They went into mass production in 2022, the sources said. The project is part of a special budget for the Ministry of National Defense aimed at
READY TO WORK: Taiwan is eager to cooperate and is hopeful that like-minded states will continue to advocate for its inclusion in regional organizations, Lai said Maintaining the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait, and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region must be a top priority, president-elect William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after meeting with a delegation of US academics. Leaders of the G7, US President Joe Biden and other international heads of state have voiced concerns about the situation in the Strait, as stability in the region is necessary for a safe, peaceful and prosperous world, Lai said. The vice president, who is to be inaugurated in May, welcomed the delegation and thanked them for their support for Taiwan and issues concerning the Strait. The international community
COOPERATION: Two crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank off Kinmen were rescued, two were found dead and another two were still missing at press time The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) was yesterday working with Chinese rescuers to find two missing crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank southwest of Kinmen County yesterday, killing two crew. The joint operation managed to rescue two of the boat’s six crewmembers, but two were already dead when they were pulled from the water, the agency said in a statement. Rescuers are still searching for two others from the Min Long Yu 61222, a boat registered in China’s Fujian Province that capsized and sank 1.03 nautical miles (1.9km) southwest of Dongding Island (東碇), it added. CGA Director-General Chou Mei-wu (周美伍) told a