Lawmaker seeks revival of Bataan nuke plant

THE looming power crisis has prompted a lawmaker to seek commercial operation of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP). Rep. Kimi Cojuangco of the Fifth District of Pangasinan filed House Bill 1291 or the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant Act of 2010 on Tuesday which she said would address the country’s electricity generating capacity shortfall by 2012 and the worsening problem of global warming due to carbon emissions.

Under Cojuangco’s measure, the National Power Corp. is mandated and authorized to undertake the immediate validation of the BNPP under the supervision of the Department of Energy. Moreover, the House Bill 1291 will allow the BNPP to operate for 40 years from the date of its commercial operation which can be extended provided that the extended operational lifetime will not exceed 20 years per extension.

“This will eliminate the spread of heavy metals, toxic substances, and radioactive elements which occur through the continued use of the conventional and traditional fossil fuel power generating technologies,” Cojuangco, who replaced her husband Mark in the House of Representatives, pointed out.

Cojuangco’s bill defined validation as a two-stage process which will determine if the BNPP is mechanically, structurally, and electronically at par with its three other sister plants operating in the world today, especially the KORI II Nuclear Power Plant in the Republic of Korea which will serve as the preferred baseline model guiding the validation of the BNPP.

The first stage consist of ascertaining if the BNPP can be brought to the required specification for certification and operation with the allocated $1 billion maximum expenditure allowed by Act, resulting in a “go” or “no go” finding.

The second stage, which can proceed upon a “go” result in the first stage, will then involve the immediate rehabilitation, repair, reconstruction and other activities mandated in the first stage, culminating in a hot function test for a duration equal to one and a half times internationally recognized standards and resulting in the receipt of the required operating certificates from the regulating authority. It is only then that the BNPP may be activated.

The second stage, however, can still come into force upon a “no go” result through a declaration of a permanent BNPP closure and the disposal through public bidding of all remaining BNPP assets within one year from the declaration date, or at the minimum, the cessation of public funding for the further maintenance of BNPP.

The financing for the BNPP initiative, according to the BNPP Act of 2010, will be sourced from the Energy department, National Power Corp. , or the Philippine National Oil Corp. and the Office of the President.

She also cited that her latest move to revive the BNPP is in accordance to the Section 16 Article 2 of the 1987 Constitution which states that the State shall protect and advance the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony of nature. –Llanesca T. Panti, Manila Times