Senator Panfilo Lacson and his running mate, Senate President Vicente Sotto III, said on Thursday that nuclear power could be included among the options for meeting the country’s energy needs if safety is assured.
“Ang nuclear kasi cleanest tapos cheapest. Ang makikinabang diyan ‘yung consumers, mura kasi (Nuclear is the cleanest and cheapest energy source. Also, consumers will benefit from it because it is cheap),” Lacson said in a press conference in Sorsogon City.
On Wednesday, the Department of Energy (DOE) stated the Philippines is prepared to engage in a cooperation agreement with the United States to explore the possibility of adding nuclear power to the country’s energy mix.
Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said the DOE is expecting President Rodrigo Duterte’s approval of the plan to incorporate nuclear energy in the country’s power mix after it submitted the study performed by the Nuclear Energy Program Inter-Agency Committee (NEP-IAC) in 2020.
Lacson said he would “definitely” push for the inclusion of nuclear energy in the power mix.
He said the country gets 57 percent of its energy from coal-fired plants, 21% from renewables, 19% from geothermal, and 1.2 percent from biomass.
Lacson-Sotto tandem supports use of nuclear energy
“Ang dami nating pwedeng i-harness and ‘yung nuclear is also one. Ang consideration lang natin do’n talaga is the safety” (we have so much to harness and nuclear is one. The only consideration is safety), he said.
Lacson stated in Filipino, “Our primary priority is safety.” The Philippines is located in an earthquake zone and ranks fourth among the countries most vulnerable to climate change.
If the country would go nuclear, we must ensure that tragedies like Chernobyl in Russia and Fukushima in Japan do not happen to us.
Lacson also stated in February that he is open to the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant being restarted in a safe and scientifically sound manner.
President Rodrigo Duterte has signed an executive order (EO) allowing nuclear power to be used as an energy source alongside other alternative energy sources, claiming that this is necessary to meet the country’s growth goals.
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