The No. 2 reactor of the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant in Pingtung County is to be closed on Saturday next week. Taiwan would then officially become the first country in Asia that has nuclear plants, but is “nuclear power free,” a long-time milestone in the nation’s energy transformation. The Jinshan Nuclear Power Plant and the Guosheng Nuclear Power Plant were decommissioned in 2019 and 2023 respectively, after their 40-year operation permits expired.
National electricity consumption last year reached a historical high of 283.35 terawatt hours. As electricity demand is forecast to grow by 2.8 percent annually to 2033, the decommissioning of the nuclear power plants has, unsurprisingly, raised concerns about a potential energy shortfall, even though nuclear power accounted for only about 4 percent of total electricity generation last year, compared with fossil-fuel fired thermal power, which accounted for 82 percent, and renewable energy, which made up 12 percent and surpassed 10 percent for the first time.
The government has vowed to speed up the activation of new liquefied natural gas (LNG) power generation units at the Hsinta, Sun Ba and Datan power plants, which could produce 4.81 gigawatts (GW) to compensate for the 0.95GW power generation lost from decommissioning Ma-anshan’s No. 2 reactor.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and nuclear power advocates are pushing to extend the lifespan of nuclear power plants by 20 years. However, they have failed to provide practical measures to solve the problems caused by using nuclear power, including the disposal of radioactive waste, and the safety risk it poses during natural disasters.
The opposition has consistently hindered the construction of non-nuclear power generation facilities, with excuses such as “LNG deliveries could be blocked by Chinese military actions,” while deliberately ignoring how nuclear power plants could be the most vulnerable targets in case of military conflict. It has also rejected the government’s proposed NT$100 billion (US$3.3 billion) budget to reduce Taiwan Power Co’s losses, mainly due to rising international fuel prices and constructions to improve power generation. Instead, it has proposed a cash handout of NT$10,000 to Taiwanese nationals, which is obviously a political tactic.
Taiwan needs to face its energy problems and cannot just rely on the extension of aging nuclear power plants’ operation. More efforts and resources should be deployed to boost energy supply, such as expanding non-nuclear energy generation, upgrading the electricity grid, enhancing electricity storage and exploring new energy production technologies.
The government’s policy of “replacing coal with gas” has reduced thermal power plants’ carbon emissions by more than 10 percent. The expansion of LNG-fired energy generation, which accounted for 42 percent of the national energy generation last year, surpassing coal, could be a rational and practical choice.
The nation should accelerate the production of renewable energy, which has fallen behind the original goal of reaching 20 percent by this year. Given that a growing number of international high-tech firms have vowed to use more green energy and are willing to invest in its production, the government should ease regulations and provide incentives to encourage more green energy investments.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) has said that the government is open to international collaborations on new nuclear power technologies. However, those should be based on safety requirements, proper waste management and massive societal support.
While Taiwan is pursuing high-tech industrial development and national security resilience, it also needs the determination and wisdom to make the right choices in its non-nuclear energy policy.
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