Meralco pushes for Senate OK on nuclear bill

MANILA, Philippines — Industry giant Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) is hoping that the bill seeking to create the country’s independent nuclear regulator will secure Senate approval when sessions resume in June.

“We’re running out of time. Hopefully, the nuclear PhilATOM bill will be passed by the Senate by June,” Meralco executive vice president and COO Ronnie Aperocho said in a recent interview.

Aperocho was referring to the Philippine Nuclear Energy Safety Act, which aims to establish a comprehensive legal framework for the safe and peaceful utilization of nuclear energy in the country.

PhilATOM pertains to the proposed Philippine Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority, which will assume all regulatory tasks currently managed by the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute.

Any further delays in the bill’s passage, Aperocho said, could result in a “major backlog” in achieving the government’s nuclear targets.

Under the country’s roadmap, the government wants to integrate at least 1,200 megawatts of nuclear capacity into the energy mix by 2032 and scale this up to 2,400 MW by 2035 and 4,800 MW by 2050.

“I think there have been representations already to the President (Marcos) to somehow accelerate the enactment of the bill,” Aperocho said.

The House of Representatives approved on third and final reading the PhilATOM bill late in 2023. The measure, however, only gained traction in the Senate last December and early this year.

Congress, currently in recess, is scheduled to reconvene on June 2, with its adjournment set for June 13. This means senators have only nine days, excluding weekends and holidays, to debate, review and vote on the proposed measure.

“Without the PhilATOM bill, I think all we could do is to somehow conduct feasibility studies (and) train our people,” Aperocho said.

Meralco, chaired by tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan, recently signed a two-year cooperation agreement with French state-run power giant Electricité de France to explore nuclear power and pursue potential investments.

And to further advance the cause, Meralco formally launched on April 24 its nuclear energy strategic transition program, which includes the potential revival of the 620-MW Bataan Nuclear Power Plant.

BNPP, the Philippines’ first attempt to integrate nuclear power into the energy pie, was completed in 1984 but was never activated due to safety and political issues.

Apart from the Bataan plant, Meralco is also exploring the feasibility of building small modular reactors (SMRs), with capacity ranging from 300 to 450 MW.

“We really leave it up to the DOE (Department of Energy) to determine how we can develop SMRs,” said Aperocho, noting that discussions are already underway.

Energy Undersecretary Sharon Garin earlier said the DOE assessed a number of potential sites in the country where nuclear power plants could be constructed.

Among areas being considered are Bulacan, Batangas, Palawan and Masbate in Luzon, as well as several provinces in the western portion of the Visayas and Mindanao.