BNPP Revival an Added Burden to the Filipino People- Maza

“Now it is clear that the Filipino consumers will be the ones to bear the burden of reviving the BNPP. Certainly, this would bring more misery rather than benefit to the public because they are the ones made to pay the high price of this ultimately vague project.”

Thus said Assistant Minority leader and Gabriela Women’s Party Representative Liza Maza today who joined the mounting opposition against the plan to immediately recommission and operate the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant through House Bill No.4631 principally authored by Rep. Mark Cojuanco.

“We are talking of more than $1 B cost for reviving the BNPP. Judging from the evaluation of the nuclear power industry, actual costs turned out to be three times more than the estimates,” Maza said.

“According to the US Department of Energy, the actual cost of 75 of the US reactors currently in operation came to USD 145 billion against the estimated USD 45 billion. In India, final cost of the last 10 reactors has been on average three times over the budget. In Europe, recorded cost overruns from CZK 35 to over 100 billion which is again three times over the budget,” Maza stressed.

Aside from the financial weight of the the BNPP revival, Maza also questioned the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) entered into by National Power Cooperation (NPC) and Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) last November 2008.

“The cooperation scope of the MOU is so broad and there might be conflict of interests. There should be an independent group to conduct the feasibility study,” Maza added.

Article 2.3 of the MOU states that “cooperation in nuclear power plant rehabilitation, operation and maintenance and other business related fields which includes studies for preparation, planning and implementation of the Project, site survey for the Project, subject to the Safety and Security regulations of NPC, Nuclear legislation, regulation and administration, studies on environmental impact of the Project, human resources development related to the Project and other subjects of mutual interest as may be agreed upon.”

The Gabriela Solon also vowed her full support to the Network Opposed to BNPP Revival, a broad alliance of activists, scientists, environmentalists, legislators and multi-sectoral formations. Maza believes that it is highly important for people to raise their opposition to this defective, dangerous and anomalous BNPP. ###