The government would be open to discussion, research and collaboration with the world’s leading nuclear energy developers, and would not rule out use of new nuclear energy, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said today.
The issue has resurfaced in the past week after American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Raymond Greene on Friday said that the US could be a reliable energy source for Taiwan, including nuclear energy.
As the world’s largest energy exporter, the US could provide Taiwan with liquefied natural gas and nuclear energy, Greene said, adding that the AIT is already negotiating with Taiwanese businesses and government organizations on how to better support Taiwan’s energy supply.
Photo: CNA
Taiwan is highly dependent on energy imports, although domestic green energy development is expanding, Cho said.
The government’s current policy prioritizes reducing carbon emissions, with the goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions through the development of renewable energy sources, he said.
Taiwan is also focused on transitioning aging coal-fired power plants to natural gas-fired units, he added.
The government would consider the use of new nuclear energy if there were public support, safety assurances, and a viable and sustainable nuclear waste disposal method, Cho said.
Taiwan is to close the No. 2 reactor of the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant in May in accordance with the Nuclear Reactor Facilities Regulation Act (核子反應器設施管制法), he said.
It is the final reactor still in operation in the nation’s only active nuclear plant in Pingtung County’s Hengchun Township (恆春).
Some lawmakers have proposed nuclear energy amendments that could affect the regulations, although the bills are still in the early stages, Cho said.
The government has a responsibility to ensure a stable and sufficient power supply in Taiwan, which in turn has a responsibility to the world in housing and developing key technologies while playing a critical role in global supply chains, he said.
Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said that the government is open to all energy sources and adopts a diversified energy policy.
Kuo dismissed the claim that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) is expanding investments in the US due to insufficient domestic energy and water supplies, saying that Taiwan’s utilities are sufficient.
Although Taiwan might face some constraints with available land and utilities, the government has adequately prepared for such situations, he said.
Moreover, TSMC’s proposal to invest in the US is not finalized, as it has not yet entered the administrative review process at the Department of Investment Review, he added.
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) is to begin his one-year alternative military service tomorrow amid ongoing legal issues, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. Wang, who last month was released on bail of NT$150,000 (US$4,561) as he faces charges of allegedly attempting to evade military service and forging documents, has been ordered to report to Taipei Railway Station at 9am tomorrow, the Alternative Military Service Training and Management Center said. The 33-year-old would join about 1,300 other conscripts in the 263rd cohort of general alternative service for training at the Chenggong Ling camp in Taichung, a center official told reporters. Wang would first
A BETRAYAL? It is none of the ministry’s business if those entertainers love China, but ‘you cannot agree to wipe out your own country,’ the MAC minister said Taiwanese entertainers in China would have their Taiwanese citizenship revoked if they are holding Chinese citizenship, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said. Several Taiwanese entertainers, including Patty Hou (侯佩岑) and Ouyang Nana (歐陽娜娜), earlier this month on their Weibo (微博) accounts shared a picture saying that Taiwan would be “returned” to China, with tags such as “Taiwan, Province of China” or “Adhere to the ‘one China’ principle.” The MAC would investigate whether those Taiwanese entertainers have Chinese IDs and added that it would revoke their Taiwanese citizenship if they did, Chiu told the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper
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