The international consensus is drifting toward embracing nuclear energy, and Taiwan’s politicians, regardless of political camp, should also reconsider their stance on the controversial issue, former US secretary of energy Steven Chu (朱棣文) said yesterday at the Forum on the Power for Sustainable Economic Development in Taipei.
Nuclear power is a controversial issue in Taiwan, but other countries are again choosing it as a preferred option, Chu said.
Chu cited a shift in the US, in which the California governor had pledged to shut down two nuclear power plants, but ultimately agreed to extend the licenses for both plants for two decades.
Photo: CNA
Nuclear power provides energy security, especially when there is no wind and sunlight is weak, he said, adding that “those in the know should give voice to their opinions.”
In terms of nuclear power safety, Chu said to look at the mortality statistics for every kilowatt-hour of electricity generated, stating that the highest mortality rate was held by burning brown coal, followed, in descending order, by coal, diesel, biomass, liquefied natural gas (LNG), hydroelectricity, wind and, finally, nuclear energy.
Global tech giants such as Meta, Google, Amazon and Microsoft are also evaluating the possibility of using nuclear power, as data centers consume a lot of power, Chu said.
Commenting on net zero goals, Chu said a UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report concluded that one-quarter of greenhouse gases originated from electricity and heat generation.
The overhead required to develop renewable energy has continued to drop, Chu said, adding that photoelectric power generation overhead has decreased by 80 percent in the past decade, while land-based wind turbines have decreased by 38 percent in the same timeframe.
Forty to 60 percent of electricity would be generated by wind or solar sources by 2040, he said.
However, the power sources are intermittent and would create significant stress on the power grid, he added.
Taiwan’s power grid would need to rely on demand response measures, employ artificial intelligence and establish low-cost energy storage facilities, such as pumped-storage hydroelectricity facilities, to ease the stress on its grid, Chu said.
Taiwan must be aware of the threat of foreign powers damaging LNG pipes to destabilize its power grid, he said.
Even if renewable power comprised 50 percent of Taiwan’s power generation, the remaining half is generated by coal-fired or LNG sources, the latter of which is expensive, while Taiwan has insufficient storage facilities, he said.
At Taiwan’s current storage capacity, the nation would only have 10 days of LNG supply, making it a severe energy security issue if Taiwan was to be cut off, Chu added.
Eight restaurants in Taiwan yesterday secured a one-star rating from the Michelin Guide Taiwan for the first time, while three one-star restaurants from last year’s edition were promoted to two stars. Forty-three restaurants were awarded one star this year, including 34 in Taipei, five in Taichung and four in Kaohsiung. Hosu (好嶼), Chuan Ya (川雅), Sushi Kajin (鮨嘉仁), aMaze (心宴), La Vie by Thomas Buhner, Yuan Yi (元一) and Frassi in Taipei and Front House (方蒔) in Kaohsiung received a one-star rating for the first time. Hosu is known for innovative Taiwanese dishes, while Chuan Ya serves Sichuan cuisine and aMaze specializes
Taitung County is to launch charter flights to Malaysia at the end of this year, after setting up flights to Vietnam and Thailand, the Taitung County Government said yesterday. The new charter flight services, provided by low-cost carrier Batik Air Malaysia, would be part of five-day tour packages for visits to Taitung County or Malaysia. The Batik Air charter flight, with about 200 seats, would take Malaysian tourists to Taitung on Dec. 30 and then at 12:35pm return to Kuala Lumpur with Taiwanese tourists. Another charter flight would bring the Taiwanese home on Jan. 3 next year, arriving at 5:30pm, before taking the
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) plans to ease strained capacity during peak hours by introducing new fare rules restricting passengers traveling without reserved seats in 2026, company Chairman Shih Che (史哲) said Wednesday. THSRC needs to tackle its capacity issue because there have been several occasions where passengers holding tickets with reserved seats did not make it onto their train in stations packed with individuals traveling without a reserved seat, Shih told reporters in a joint interview in Taipei. Non-reserved seats allow travelers maximum flexibility, but it has led to issues relating to quality of service and safety concerns, especially during
An exhibition celebrating Taiwan and Japan’s comic culture opened on Saturday in Taichung, featuring a section that explores Taiwanese reproductions of Japanese comics from when martial law limited Japanese representation. “A Century of Manga Culture: An Encounter of Taiwan and Japan’s Youth” held its Taiwan opening ceremony at Taichung’s National Taiwan Museum of Comics after an initial one-month run in Japan’s Kyoto International Manga Museum between May 24 and June 24. Much like the Kyoto exhibition, the show mainly celebrates the comic connection between Taiwan and Japan through late Taiwanese comic book
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