The government will not extend the operating life of two of the nation’s nuclear power plants, Premier Lin Chuan (林全) said yesterday, while promising that electricity supply would remain stable.
During a visit to the Taipower Exhibit Center to meet with residents of New Taipei City — where the two plants are — to discuss issues such as dealing with nuclear waste, Lin said that the Jinshan Nuclear Power Plant in Shihmen District (石門) and the Guosheng Nuclear Power Plant in Wanli District (萬里) would be phased out according to the government’s schedule.
According to the schedule, the No. 1 reactor at the Jinshan plant is to shut down on Dec. 5, 2018, followed by the phasing out of the No. 2 reactor on July 15, 2019; and the Guosheng plant’s No. 1 and No. 2 reactors are to end operations on Dec. 27, 2021, and March 14, 2023, respectively.
Lin sparked controversy in June when he said consideration should be given to restarting the first reactor at the Jinshan plant to ensure electricity supply during the peak summer season.
Lin yesterday said that one of the two reactors at each plant are already out of service and the government is pushing to transform the nation’s power supply structure.
He said that several options are available to ensure a stable supply of electricity.
“Currently, there does not seem to be a problem,” he said.
The first reactor at the Jinshan facility has been suspended since December 2014 after it underwent major maintenance. One of the reactors at the Guosheng plant has been out of service since April, when it also underwent major maintenance, but encountered a glitch in its electrical system.
Taiwan has three active nuclear facilities.
According to the policy of President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration to create a nuclear-free homeland, Taiwan’s three operational plants are scheduled to be decommissioned by 2025, while the nearly completed Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in Gongliao District (貢寮), New Taipei City, is to remain mothballed.
Nuclear power has traditionally accounted for nearly 20 percent of Taiwan’s electricity production, raising questions about what will replace it when it is phased out.
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