If the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant cannot become operational due to public opposition, the operational periods of the three existing plants will have to be extended, which could cost between NT$35 billion and NT$40 billion (US$1.16 billion and US$1.33 billion) to renew equipment, Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) said.
Company spokesman Tsai Feng-fu (蔡豐富) said that if service is extended by 20 years, the three plants could generate 40 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per year, or 800 billion kWh in 20 years.
If other energy resources are used to generate electricity, such as coal or natural gas, the cost could be NT$1.6 trillion, he said.
Tsai said that with thermal power plants heading for decommissioning in the coming years, there is a risk of power shortages by 2016, of which northern Taiwan would bear the brunt.
He said that if the fourth plant in Gongliao District (貢寮), New Taipei City, is not brought online, other energy resources will need to be found to fill the gap, and extending the service of the three existing plants is one option.
He said that the two units of the fourth plant could generate about 19.3 billion kWh per year, while the electricity generated by the Jinshan, Guosheng and Ma-anshan nuclear power plants is 9 billion kWh, 16 billion kWh and 15 billion kWh respectively.
Considering that northern Taiwan is more likely to face electricity shortages, priority will be given to extending the service of the Jinshan and Guosheng plants, both of which are in New Taipei City, but the decision will ultimately be based on government policy, he said.
According to the Atomic Energy Council Web site, the two units of the Jinshan plant in Shihmen District (石門) will expire in 2018 and 2019 respectively, while the two units in the Guosheng plant in Wanli District (萬里) will expire in 2021 and 2023, and the two in the Ma-anshan plant in Ma-anshan (馬鞍山), Pingtung County, in 2024 and 2025.
Applications to extend service need to be submitted five years before a plant’s expiration date.
The extension service application for the Jinshan plant was submitted before the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant disaster in the wake of the March 11, 2011, earthquake in Japan.
Meanwhile, Taipower estimated that despite electricity rate hikes in October last year, the company’s losses this year will amount to nearly NT$10 billion.
As of the end of last month, the company had accumulated losses of NT$209.4 billion.
DEFENSE: The National Security Bureau promised to expand communication and intelligence cooperation with global partners and enhance its strategic analytical skills China has not only increased military exercises and “gray zone” tactics against Taiwan this year, but also continues to recruit military personnel for espionage, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday in a report to the Legislative Yuan. The bureau submitted the report ahead of NSB Director-General Tsai Ming-yen’s (蔡明彥) appearance before the Foreign and National Defense Committee today. Last year, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted “Joint Sword-2024A and B” military exercises targeting Taiwan and carried out 40 combat readiness patrols, the bureau said. In addition, Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s airspace 3,070 times last year, up about
A magnitude 4.3 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 8:31am today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was located in Hualien County, about 70.3 kilometers south southwest of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 23.2km, according to the administration. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County, where it measured 3 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 2 in Hualien and Nantou counties, the CWA said.
The Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC) yesterday announced a fundraising campaign to support survivors of the magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck Myanmar on March 28, with two prayer events scheduled in Taipei and Taichung later this week. “While initial rescue operations have concluded [in Myanmar], many survivors are now facing increasingly difficult living conditions,” OCAC Minister Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青) told a news conference in Taipei. The fundraising campaign, which runs through May 31, is focused on supporting the reconstruction of damaged overseas compatriot schools, assisting students from Myanmar in Taiwan, and providing essential items, such as drinking water, food and medical supplies,
New Party Deputy Secretary-General You Chih-pin (游智彬) this morning went to the National Immigration Agency (NIA) to “turn himself in” after being notified that he had failed to provide proof of having renounced his Chinese household registration. He was one of more than 10,000 naturalized Taiwanese citizens from China who were informed by the NIA that their Taiwanese citizenship might be revoked if they fail to provide the proof in three months, people familiar with the matter said. You said he has proof that he had renounced his Chinese household registration and demanded the NIA provide proof that he still had Chinese
RSS