The short-dated policy structure in place in the energy sector’s competitive selection process (CSP) at the moment has to align with the long-dated nature of nuclear power development programs, proponents said on Tuesday.
Such alignment, in addition to enacting foundational laws, is needed to jumpstart the country’s prospective investments in the nuclear energy space, according to an official of a local power company.
Felino Bernardo, Aboitiz Power Thermal Business Group chief operating officer, said power supply contracts under the CSP is only 15 years long and clearly inadequate in developing nuclear power generation programs typically lasting 40 or even 60 years.
“There’s dissonance between current policies and what nuclear (programs) do,” Bernardo said at an online forum on nuclear energy hosted by the APEC Business Advisory Council on Tuesday.
According to Bernardo, it is also important for government to set up a nuclear regulatory body and build on its capability to craft regulations, policies and guidelines for developers to follow.
“The Department of Energy has to put it in their policy, the energy mix of the Philippines, and come up with the right signal for developers to come up with their own plans, to ensure that we build accordingly,” Bernardo said.
He also said it is important for local developers to keep an open mind on technologies, saying that large, small and modular micro reactors “have a place in the economy.”
Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla acknowledged that “policy and regulatory reforms are ultimately needed to stimulate investments in nuclear power programs.”
He emphasized the program’s success depends on the support of all stakeholders as policy makers, regulators, consumers and the general community.
Lotilla committed to participate in policy discussions much like the agency is doing at present for when policymakers and legislators will have crafted an energy roadmap from which regulations will be based in years forward.
“It is my hope that all our efforts, whether domestic, national, regional, or international, will contribute toward ensuring energy security and sustainability in the future,” Lotilla said.
