Power retailer Manila Electric Co. is keeping a “vigilant watch” on nuclear energy developments as the company studies the technology’s role in the sustainability mix.
“The best we can [do] for the moment is to really maintain a vigilant watch over what’s happening with the States, but we’re about five to 10 years away from making a decision,” Meralco chairman Manuel Pangilinan said.
Pangilinan also questioned the country’s readiness to educate the people on nuclear energy.
“But we should prepare for it now, by educating our people in nuclear energy. We should prepare for it though, and I think Meralco is prepared to sponsor scholarship for Filipinos in that particular area,” he said.
Meralco president Ray Espinosa said the company had not allocated any budget for nuclear power projects including small nuclear reactors.
SMR are advanced nuclear reactors with up to 300 megawatts, or about a third of the generating capacity of traditional nuclear power reactors. They are smaller in size than conventional power reactors and easier to install.
“It’s very difficult to budget and forecast nuclear, for instance, because as you know, if you’re talking about SMR, the first of its kind will be delivered only in 2028,” Espinosa said.
He said nuclear pricing for SMR was unclear, and the NuScale Power Corp.’s SMR pilot project was still “a proof of concept.”
Espinosa said the Philippines was also not socially ready for nuclear. However, Meralco plans to apply for a grant with the U.S. Trade and Development Agency for a feasibility study on SMRs for power generation.
“We are applying for a grant with the USTDA to do a feasibility study for SMR. So, it’s in process. But we’re looking into nuclear for feasibility study only,” Espinosa said earlier.
The USTDA links U.S. businesses to export projects by funding project preparations and creating partnerships.
Meralco is studying nuclear power as part of its sustainability strategy through 2050 in the wake of the government’s plan to pursue the technology in the country’s energy mix.