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Taiwan won't stop building 4th nuke power plant: minister

ROC Central News Agency

2011/03/17 18:25:09

By Lin Shu-yuan, Hsieh Chia-chen and S.C. Chang

Taipei, March 17 (CNA) Construction of the fourth nuclear power plant will not stop, but the government will give it some "serious thought" before installing fuel rods in the facility, a senior official said Thursday.

Economics Minister Shih Yen-shiang made the remarks while answering lawmakers' questions at a legislative committee meeting.

As Japan's nuclear power crisis unfolds, lawmakers focused their questions on the safety of Taiwan's nuclear power plants, which all lie within 7km of seismic fault lines.

Shih told the lawmakers that the fourth nuclear power plant in northeast Taiwan is currently installing its electrical and peripheral facilities, which poses no risks or safety concerns yet. Therefore, construction will proceed.

"When it comes time to install fuel rods, the government will give it some serious thought, " Shih said, without elaborating further.

But the minister stressed that as an energy importing country, Taiwan must rely on nuclear power for a certain percentage of its energy supply. To ensure a stable supply of energy, Taiwan needs to complete the fourth plant.

Lin Chao-tsung, an economics official in charge of geological surveys, predicted the worst earthquake that could occur on the two fault lines near the fourth nuclear power plant would be magnitude 7.0.

The plant is located between the Fangchiao fault, located 1.3 km away, and the Hsiti fault, located 2.6 km from the plant.

The first, second and third nuclear power plants in Taiwan are 7 km, 5 km and 1.5 km from seismic faults respectively, Lin said.

During the same hearing, opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Chun-yi had a brief but heated exchange with the economics minister over the fate of nuclear power in Taiwan. Lee demanded that Shih refuse the extensions of service for Taiwan's first three nuclear plants, which would effectively phase out nuclear power. He said his demand was based on a consensus between the ruling and opposition party caucuses at the legislature.

But Shih responded that since the legislature never explicitly passed a law to make Taiwan a non-nuclear country, his ministry will follow the existing laws, which allow nuclear power to continue.

Tsai Chuen-horng, minister of the Atomic Energy Council (AEC) , assured lawmakers that the three existing nuclear power plants, although nearly 30 years old, are safe because they have been regularly "upgraded and updated."

Improvements have been made with respect to the rules, safety standards, materials and equipment for all three plants, which Tsai said are working as if they are "new." As a result, his council will not order a suspension or decommission of any of the three plants unless there are "immediate safety concerns."

Turning to progress on the fourth plant, Tsai said AEC has scheduled 18 "major procedures" and 66 "minor checks" to ensure the fuel rods will be properly installed.