Uncertainty Ahead as Taiwan Switches Off Its Last Nuclear Reactor

TaiwanPlus News

Taiwan is switching off its final operating nuclear reactor this weekend despite a last-ditch attempt from opposition lawmakers to offer a way back for nuclear energy generation.

Transcript

00:01Every day, Chen Longcheng delivers lunch from his restaurant to the nuclear power plant across the road.

00:08The father of two has lived and worked here in Hongchun town in Taiwan's south for more than half his life.

00:16But these are some of the final deliveries before the plant is switched off.

00:21And with that, the country's nuclear power.

00:25Chen thinks that's a bad decision.

00:30If you have a nuclear power plant, you need to continue to support it.

00:36It's better for the people.

00:39And it's okay for the工夫.

00:41If you have a nuclear power plant, the power plant will grow.

00:47Despite growing unease among some about turning off nuclear power,

00:53Taiwan's ruling party is pressing ahead with its longtime goal of a nuclear-free homeland.

01:00It's been increasing wind and solar sources and reducing coal-fired power in favor of natural gas.

01:10Once seen as a cheap and stable way of helping Taiwan industrialize,

01:16nuclear power fell out of public favor.

01:18Because of safety fears, particularly after the 2011 Fukushima disaster in Japan,

01:25and the problem of where to store nuclear waste.

01:29Since 2017, the operating licenses of all Taiwan's reactors have expired.

01:34Taiwan's third nuclear power plant opened here on the southern coast in the mid-1980s,

01:42when nuclear power accounted for around 50% of the country's electricity.

01:47That's now down to 3%, all produced here, the last of Taiwan's six reactors to shut down.

01:55Taiwan already imports virtually all its energy.

02:00That's led to fears about the country's energy supply in the event of a blockade by China,

02:06which claims sovereignty over Taiwan.

02:09If there's any problem, it's only for two weeks to save.

02:14The price is not enough to say, it's not a stable power plant.

02:20The most stable power plant is the most stable power plant.

02:22Businesses already worry about a power crunch after several mass blackouts.

02:30In a last-ditch effort to keep nuclear power,

02:33Taiwan's opposition-controlled legislature amended the law,

02:38allowing plant operators to apply to run for another 20 years.

02:43That's come too late to keep this reactor running,

02:46and the government says it would take at least a year and a half to restart it.

02:50But President Lai Ching-deh's Democratic Progressive Party

02:54is not ruling out bringing nuclear back sometime in the future.

03:09Reaching public and political consensus will be no easy task.

03:15At least for now,

03:16Taiwan has to adapt to a future with no nuclear power.

03:20And the uncertainty that brings.

03:24Devon Tsai and Louise Watt for Taiwan Plus.

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