The government does not rule out advanced nuclear energy generation if it meets the government’s three prerequisites, President William Lai (賴清德) said last night after the number of votes in favor of restarting a nuclear power plant outnumbered the “no” votes in a referendum yesterday.
The referendum failed to pass, despite getting more “yes” votes, as the Referendum Act (公民投票法) states that the vote would only pass if the votes in favor account for more than one-fourth of the total number of eligible voters and outnumber the opposing votes.
Yesterday’s referendum question was: “Do you agree that the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant should continue operations upon approval by the competent authority and confirmation that there are no safety concerns?”
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
More than 4.34 million people voted “yes” to the restarting of the power plant, while more than 1.51 million chose “no.” The voter turnout was 29.53 percent.
Lai said the government respects the referendum result and would continue to prioritize nuclear safety in its energy policy.
Lai added he understood "the society's expectations for diverse energy options."
"The greatest consensus of Taiwan's energy debate ... is safety. Nuclear safety is a scientific issue, and one that cannot be resolved through a single vote," he said.
Restarting nuclear plants could not be considered without the Nuclear Safety Council establishing rules for nuclear safety review and Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) conducting a safety review in accordance with the rules, he said.
Lai said he asked the council to propose nuclear safety review rules for Taipower to conduct safety inspections on its nuclear power generating units.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
The council should formulate the rules as soon as possible and Taipower should begin nuclear safety inspections after the rules are promulgated, Lai said, adding that information on the progress and potential risks would be disclosed to the public.
“If safety requirements are met, the proposal [of restarting nuclear plants] could next be sent to the council for review,” he said.
The government would continue to address nuclear issues based on three principles: nuclear safety, nuclear waste solutions and societal consensus, Lai said.
“If nuclear technology becomes safer, with less nuclear waste produced and greater social acceptance, we would not preclude such advanced nuclear technology,” he said, adding that the government was responsible for ensuring a stable power supply for the public.
Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌), whose party proposed the referendum, at a separate news conference last night expressed thanks to the more than 4 million voters who voted “yes” to restarting the Ma-anshan power plant.
“That marked a new start point in the history of Taiwan’s energy transition and showed that the Democratic Progressive Party should review its wrong energy policy,” he said.
Although the “yes” votes did not reach the 25 percent threshold, the agreeing votes outnumbered the “no” votes nearly threefold, indicating that the government should step up the energy transition by correcting its energy policy, Huang said.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs should allow Taipower to apply for restarting nuclear power plants, based on Article 6 of the Nuclear Reactor Facilities Control Act (核子反應器設施管制法), he said.
“Yes” votes exceeded “no” votes even in Pingtung County, where the Ma-anshan power plant is located, showing that the locals are willing to restart the plant for a stable power supply, Huang added.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) yesterday said that the referendum result was a triumph for the public’s voice over the authorities’ arrogance.
He also called on the Lai administration to refrain from political infighting and prioritize people’s livelihoods.
Chu proposed five reform initiatives on behalf of the KMT — providing relief packages in response to increased US tariffs, bolstering energy security, enhancing judicial independence, respecting the legislature’s power of oversight and to stop tearing apart society.
Additional reporting by AFP
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