Proposed amendments to the Electricity Act (電業法) would deny funding for the cleanup of nuclear power facilities and fail to liberalize the renewable energy market, environmentalists said yesterday, calling for a review of the legislation to be postponed until concerns are addressed.
“Fundamentally, some provisions aim to unshackle state-run Taiwan Power Co [Taipower] from any responsibility for handling expenses related to the decommissioning of nuclear power plants and the handling of nuclear waste,” said Taiwan Environmental Radiation Survey convener Lin Jui-chu (林瑞珠), a veteran anti-nuclear power campaigner, who was joined by a handful of other demonstrators in a protest outside the Legislative Yuan in Taipei.
A comprehensive package of amendments to transform Taipower and partially liberalize energy production is expected to win passage during the ongoing special legislative session.
One of the amendments would allow Taipower to end contributions to the nuclear energy back-end management fund after nuclear plants cease operation, Lin said, adding that the fund was designed to cover expenses associated with the decommissioning of nuclear power plants and the management of radioactive waste.
“It is impossible to estimate just how much money will ultimately be needed to fund the decommissioning of nuclear power plants and radioactive waste management,” she said, adding that it was unclear who would be responsible for repaying 90 percent of the fund’s capital borrowed by Taipower.
Under the amendments, the firm’s electricity production and delivery functions would be split between two successor firms, with power production opened to competition from new firms.
“The gap in capital is already huge and there will not be any new money coming in under the amendments, so addressing decommissioning and management will be a huge problem,” Lin said, questioning whether the government would be willing to assume cleanup costs.
Executive Yuan plans call for the establishment of an independent government agency to assume responsibility for nuclear waste management from Taipower.
Provisions in the amendments that would allow for the direct sale of renewable energy fall short, because selling firms would be required to have backup power sources and pay Taipower’s successor for the use of its electricity delivery network, she added.
“The only way for renewable energy firms to have backup capacity is to invest in fuel-burning power generation. Otherwise, they can only produce power when the wind is blowing or the sun is shining,” Lin said, adding that amendments for small-scale production would not apply to most renewable energy firms.
“Renewable energy firms will only be able to serve as subcontractors to Taipower, because direct sales to consumers would entail greater costs than selling to Taipower,” she said.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
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