President Duterte of the Philippines has issued a presidential directive instructing the introduction of nuclear power generation toward the realization of a carbon-free society.
The pros and cons are divided among the candidates for the presidential election scheduled for May, and the introduction of nuclear power has emerged as a new issue in the election.
On the 3rd, President Duterte of the Philippines issued a presidential decree instructing the government to formulate a nuclear power plan and aim to introduce a nuclear power plant after a government committee has completed an investigation into the feasibility of a nuclear power plant.
In the Philippines, coal-fired power generation accounts for about 60% of the country's power source composition, and the presidential directive says that nuclear power plants will be considered as an alternative in order to realize a carbon-free society and meet the ever-increasing demand for electricity.
In the Philippines, the first "Bataan nuclear power plant" was built in Southeast Asia in 1984 during the Marcos administration, but the facility remains unoperated due to the subsequent collapse of the administration.
The presidential decree has instructed us to consider using the Bataan nuclear power plant, and the late Marcos' eldest son, former Senator Marcos, who is a leading candidate for the May presidential election, has expressed a positive opinion about the use.
On the other hand, the mayor of Manila, who is also a candidate, has divided the pros and cons among the candidates, such as denying it because of safety concerns, and the introduction of nuclear power generation has emerged as a new issue in the presidential election.