Stop Nukes and Listen: Building nuclear reactor won’t solve the power crisis, push for renewables instead
- philippineclimatej
- Mar 25
- 3 min read
Quezon City, Philippines — False narratives on dirty energy sources will not fly and fool the people. Climate justice groups have been saying: Nuclear energy, like other fossil fuels, is dirty, costly, and deadly.
The Philippine Movement for Climate Justice (PMCJ) strongly condemns the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI), and other concerned government agencies, in partnering with a US nuclear energy company Valar Atomics with planning to build a "proof-of-concept" small micro reactor (SMR) in the Philippines.
SMRs, advanced nuclear reactors that have a power capacity of 300 MW per unit, were hoped to help bring down the cost of electricity in the Philippines. However, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) reported that the cost of electricity generated from nuclear reactors by 2040 would be about $145-$238 per MWh, compared to $22-$53 for solar, and $45-$78 for wind; amounting to at least twice as much for nuclear, or up to 10 times when compared to the lowest-cost solar.
The PMCJ reiterates how, mortifyingly, the current administration of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr. (BBM) lacks all seriousness in pushing for renewable energy. Last 2023, BBM's administration signed the Agreement for Cooperation Concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy or the 123 Agreement with the US. The agreement lays the legal framework for potential nuclear power projects with US providers.
Department of Energy (DOE) Undersecretary Sharon Garin shared in 68th International Atomic Energy Agency General Conference that the country targets to have commercially operational nuclear power plants by 2032, with at least 1,200 MW initially entering the country's power mix, gradually increasing to 4,800 MW by 2050. This proves how dubious, if not ironic, the BBM administration is when it comes to the energy industry.
The push for nuclear energy is not only irrational, but also impractical. Aside from its limited life—it can only last for 30 to 40 years—decommissioning it will also cost as much. The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant was completed in 1984 but never operated. The Philippines borrowed approximately $2.1 billion to build the plant, and the Filipinos finished paying for it in 2007—making the people pay for a good-for-nothing power plant that didn't even light a bulb.
The company, Valar Atomics, failed to provide pertinent information, not only on its history, but also the credibility of the SMR per se. In 2023, the DOE reported that it is looking for possible sites that can host small nuclear power plants. The Philippines refuses to be a testing ground for these extremely harmful projects. Why does the government have the penchant to be sweet-talked by unverified, without any track record to speak foreign companies? What is the real deal here?
In times of crisis, our government should not prioritize profit and business over its people and the environment. Additionally, the Philippines does not possess the professional expertise of those who know how to run nuclear facilities properly. To sustain nuclear energy projects, the country needs to rely on foreign experts, leading to additional expenses on top of its existing costs from maintenance and handling, storage, and transport of waste products.
Moreover, saying that nuclear energy is clean is simply wrong. The spent nuclear fuel, even after thousands of years, remains radioactive and harmful both to the environment and to the human body. Apart from the radiation, there would be excess heat from the micro high temperature gas reactors which will cause thermal pollution.
The people have had enough of the government pushing for dirty energy sources, saying it is clean. It is not. Batangas residents continue fighting against fossil gas power plants as it causes respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. Last January, BBM signed the gas bill into law promoting fossil gas, touted to be clean and a transition fuel–both wrong.
As the government keeps on pushing for atrocious policy schemes and dirty tactics for business, the people will not get sick of repeating the true solutions for the development of our energy industry and for the global fight for climate justice: Phase-out coal and other fossil fuels, and push for the just transition to renewable energy. It is the only way to go towards a clean and sustainable future, nothing else: no nukes, no ifs, no buts.
FOR INQUIRIES:
Sheila Abarra
Senior Media and Communications Officer
Philippine Movement for Climate Justice
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