A monument to Pinoy stupidity: the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant

Now that the Mindanao power situation is on the verge of becoming a nationwide crisis, it looks like the issue of what to do with the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) will again be thrust into the spotlight.

Your usual protesting militant and activist groups will say that health concerns, the unsafe technical and geographical conditions under which the plant operate, and the fact that it is a product of Marcos regime corruption, warrant any initiative to reconsider its operation unacceptable. I say we throw these groups into the furnaces of the coal-fired plants we currently use, or submerge all their heads underneath the waters which we use for our hydroelectric power plants.

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The Filipino opposition to nuclear power is found wanting, because we never even tried to harness it. If we are going to oppose the use of nuclear power here in the Philippines, we better have the right reasons for it, and we do: the Filipino is too immature, too lazy, and too stupid to handle such a complicated energy source. The biggest challenge for the Philippines in effectively harnessing nuclear power for our energy needs is for its people to overcome the character flaws which will prove fatal not just for the entire country, but wherever the radiation stemming from any accident will spread.

Let us briefly mention five (5) of those character flaws below:

Pwede-na-yan mentality – the operation of nuclear plants has strict guidelines that must be followed to the letter if we want to avoid any man-made catastrophes from happening. Insufficient practices of dealing with nuclear residue will be an example.

Aversion to following regulations – We all know this: Filipinos hate being inconvenienced into following rules. Then suddenly we complain about why things turn out for the worse. We can bet that Filipinos will not follow proper decontamination and sterilization procedures.

Aversion to risk taking – Filipinos are not inclined to take risks although they display the bahala na mentality. This is why any movement for development in the Philippines is stopped immediately, and why the problems that started plaguing us 30 years ago are the same ones today.

Aversion to constant upkeep – the idea of preventive maintenance is poison for the Filipino. The tendency is to abuse an item until it breaks, then complain that it was defective. How shallow and stupid can Filipinos get!

Lethargic response to emergency situations – the Philippine government is notorious for this. If they manage to botch responses to typhoons and earthquakes, do we actually think that they are going to be able to handle a nuclear meltdown, and the containment of radiation and leaking gases?

Although the risks of nuclear power cannot be overstated, the efficiency, environment-friendliness, and potential for cost-saving warrant it sufficient interest. Of course, as GRP writer Ben Kritz has pointed out, it is an arduous process to develop and maintain this resource.

The decision to stop operation of the BNPP due to the incidents at Chernobyl and Fukushima is not an excuse. The Chernobyl incident happened primarily because of negligence on part of the operators, and because of the inherent design flaws of the Generation II RBMK reactor which were in use at that time. Read more about the Chernobyl disaster and the RBMK reactor, respectively.

The Fukushima incident indeed will forever remind us of the dangers of having nuclear reactors within the Pacific ring of fire, and in an area that experiences earthquakes frequently, no less. Yes, the Japanese were less than forthcoming about the actual severity of their situation. Yet they took the risk, and they benefited from it for about 40 years. Although the Japanese were prepared to withstand the magnitude 9 earthquake, the 30-foot tsunami that accompanied it proved too much. So what happened was the 1 in several thousand chances of failure. In short, what happened was completely out of their control.

The Philippines is indeed also part of the Ring of Fire, but compared to Japan we experience much fewer earthquakes and lesser in magnitude. The BNPP houses a light water reactor (LWR), particularly a pressurized water reactor (PWR), so therefore it would not have suffered from the problems found in Chernobyl RBMK reactors. The PWR is also much safer than the boiling water reactor (BWR) found in the Fukushima plant. It is designed to generate 621 MWe of electricity, which is a big help in addressing our ever ballooning energy demand. The concern of any effect of seismic activity is addressed by the fact that it is situated 18m above sea level. In contrast, the Fukushima plant was lowered to 10m from the original height of 35m, but they did not take into account the effect of tsunamis on the plant.

It is my educated guess that for every 9 out of 10, if a nuclear incident were to happen at BNPP, it would be attributed to Filipino mediocrity and stupidity.

Let us make things clear: the problems besetting the construction of BNPP were not instigated by Cory Aquino. The project was already plagued by corruption on both sides (Philippine Government and Westinghouse) even during the time of Marcos. We could have had two (2) nuclear reactors instead of just one for a total cost of $650 million. Yet the meddling of Marcos crony Herminio Disini gave the project to Westinghouse instead of GE, who allegedly had the cheaper and more technically sound proposal. Then suddenly things went downhill from there: the deal included now just one (1) nuclear reactor, and the total project cost ballooned to $1.1 billion.

We have, in addition to the aforementioned, the following excerpts also taken from “The Marcos Dynasty”, by Sterling Seagrave:

“It was believed that the ever ballooning price of the project was attributed to Marcos’s demand for huge kickback in order to accommodate Disini and other cronies and anyone queued up.”

“When Marcos assembled his own experts several months later, they found that the design was unsafe and recommended changes to incorporate new safety features after the Three Mile Island. This proved to be rather costly when Westinghouse renegotiated the contract to meet the objections. The price rose to $1.8 billion – $55 million for added safety equipment, $645 million for higher interest costs and inflation, and finally, the eventual cost reached a whopping $2.2 billion. Work on the project was completed in 1984, which was about the same time Disini’s business empire suddenly collapsed.”

If this sound bite is authentic, then the reason Cory wanted to mothball the BNPP project was that it would forever remind the people of the bad things associated with the Marcos era. Back then people could have said that Marcos was just being a whiner. In the current era, however, Marcos’ assertion is now debatable, up notches from downright disgusting. History has clearly shown what happened after the Marcos government was ousted. He was actually right; patuloy na bumagsak ang Pilipinas (the Philippines started and continued a downward trend).

Since the government is adamant on their stand not to use the plant for power generation in the meantime, the next best thing to do was apparently, turn it into a tourist site. Ang Pinoy nga naman, eh no. Now they are considering converting it into the conventional LNG or coal-fired plant. Your guess is as good as mine as to why that is. It would only help the vested interests of their oligarch friends.

Especially with the current government, I understand in a way why governments after Marcos did not want to revive the BNPP. Most especially for the Aquinos, it would be an epic slap in the face for them and their oligarch friends to use something that Marcos had the foresight to plan. They didn’t want to turn off the minds of their “enlightened” voter/consumer base now, did they?

The flow of history has provided all the presidents who succeeded Marcos ample opportunity for the Philippines to step up and show the world that it could learn from the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear incidents. Yet true to form, all of them allowed themselves to be overtaken by panic, fear, doubt, stupidity, and the influence of their self-serving oligarch friends. This is why the Philippines remains in the dark, literally and figuratively. Because of the failure of five (5) presidencies to actually realize this potential solution to our energy problems, we remain Asia’s basketcase.

Additional references:
BNPP costs money but does not produce power
PSME study on BNPP
Using Nuclear Energy: A Philippine Experience
BNPP safer than Fukushima Plant
ABS-CBN timeline for nuclear power in the Philippines
A general study for conversions of the Bataan Nuclear Power Stations
Options for BNPP conversion to fossil fuel firing

180 Replies to “A monument to Pinoy stupidity: the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant”

  1. All roads lead back to the simple principle of why we increased our numbers to its currently embarrassing level given our proven inability to manage ourselves, our resources, and our future. The BNPP is a big issue because it stands as a monumental reminder of how little we understand about what it means to be a modern society that aspires to succeed in a complicated world.

    1. Tama lang na hndi pabuksan yan dhl dELikado, mtatandaAng ngkaroOn ng lindol n0oNG sumaBog ang pinaTubo n0oN. Mrme rin ang lumaBan na wag pbuksan yan dhl sa hnd mkakalikasan at mgdudulot ng sakit sa mga ta0ng mlapit sa plant. At ito ay pRoyekto ni Marcos na sumira sa Pilipinas ktUlad ni Gloria.

      1. Reality check: Vincenzo is anti-progress. If the BNPP is in full operation, your Meralco bill would never be an issue.

        Marcos and Gloria are not the ones who ruining the country. It’s the likes of YOU. You don’t want action and discipline.

      2. tulad ng sinabi ng writer. a nuclear plant will only be dangerous because of negligence in operation or circumstances that were out of their control. anong epekto ng pagsabog ng pinatubo sa bnpp? hihigupin ba nun ang ashes ng bulcan? it is proven that nuclear energy is more efficient that diesel fired plants or coal fired pp. kung hindi makalikasan, so paano yung ibang npp’s sa mundo? mukhang ang argument mo lang ay dahil gawa ito ni marcos. so dahil ginawa nya, di mo na gagamitin? wag mo na rin gamitin kuryente mo na galing sa geothermal plants. alam mo ba na sya din nagpagawa ng mga yun?

      3. ano ba ang sinasabi mongsum,ira ng pinas si marcos eh kung hindi naalis si marcos ay baka masmaganda pa ang pinAS ngayon ano ang ginawa ng mga pumalit sa kanya mas kurap ibinalik nila ang meralco kay lopez ngayon saksakan na ng mahal ang koryente ano ang nagawa ni cory wala si ramos wala si estrada wala si arroyo masgrabe ang kurakot at ipinagbili pa ang mga pinoy sa ibang bansa para makurakot ang mga ipinadadala sa pinas na pera ..nasira ang mga pamilya ..dapat magpatayo ang pinas ng mga factory ,para hindi na umalis ng pinas ang mga tao dahil masmasarap mabuhay sa sariling bayan

      4. let’s say delikado nga ang mga Nuclear Power Plants… but the benefits that we can reap from it is monumentally huge!!! Isa pa… masyado kasi tayong SAFE-PLAYING!!! Progress can never be achieved without a little risk!!! If you will look back at our past… We have the MOST STABLE economy in Asia (alongside with Japan)… We are considered as an influential player in the Global Market… SOKOR (S. Korea) once said that they wish to be like the Philippines… and why do we have that past? It is because we have risked ourselves to have National Reform…

        Look at the Aquino Administration today… From a commoner’s POV, its seems that the current Admin. haven’t done anything because they are playing it TOO SAFE… Well yes, we are currently experiencing an Economic Boom but to a HS Student’s View, this economic boom just resulted because the Aquinos are known throughout the world (remember Cory was a Woman of the Year in TIME)…

        Back to the BNPP issue… As far as I know… BNPP has a twin in Brazil and it works just fine… actually, it was the solution of the Brazilian Government because their power grids were on the verge of collapse… like us today… the Mindanao Civil Power Grid is now on the verge of collapse… If the BNPP project was continued and fueled by the 1st Aquino Admin., edi sana hindi natin na eexperience ang mga sudden brown-outs and kung tiga-Mindanao ka… SCHEDULED BROWN-OUTS that lasts for HOURS!!! Kung gumagana ngayon ang BNPP edi sana ang bills natin ay sobrang baba na wala nang nag-jujumper and pwede na tayong maglaro ng DOTA ng buong araw without thinking kung tataas ba ang bills natin… Isa pa… TAPOS NA NGA EH… GAWA NA!!! kung baga sa cellphone, fully charged na… ang gagawin na lang… loloadan na lang para makapagtext sa mga friends… INAYAWAN NIYO PA!!! isa pa… Health RISKS?!?!?! Are you f*cking kidding me??? Hindi naman tayo ganung KATANGA para lapitan ang fully operational NPP!!! isa pa… meron yang zoning kung hanggang saan lang ang mga civilians etc. etc. So there will be NO reasons to protest about Health Risks… Isa pa… kung SOBRANG delikado niyang BNPP… edi sana hindi yan ipinagawa… kasi bago gawin ang isang lugar… may mga experts na sinuservey kung saan pwede itayo yun… isusuggest ba nila na ang Bataan kung alam nilang delikado doon??? (common sense naman po)

        Be analytical and logical naman tayo… AND GAMITIN ANG COMMON SENSE!!!

        (sa mga na-offend… sorry po… :D)

      5. Alam mo ba sinasabi mo? Hmmm. Noong sumabog ang Pinatubo noon, may nangyari ba sa BNPP at nasira ba ito? No. At sinasabi mong si Marcos ang sumira ng Pilipinas? Hindi mo ba alam na ang Pilipinas ang isa sa pinakamayaman ng bansa sa Asia noong panahon ni Marcos? Walang tambay sa labas, walang lasinggero at ang palitan ng isang dulyar sa piso ay 1.5 lang. Napaka linis at ayos ng Pilipinas noong panahon ni Marcos. Isa pa, napakalaki ng tulong ng BNPP sa krisis sa kuryente dito sa Pilipinas kung papaganahin man. Ang palagi niyo kasing gusto, play safe eh, taandaan mo, hinding hindi mo matatakasan ang hirap ng walang risk. Kung si Marcos parin hanggang ngayon ang Presidente, hindi ganto ang Pilipinas at hindi kailan man magkakaroon ng krisis sa kuryente malamang.

        1. Puro kayo panahon ni marcos. Di na natin maibabalik yun. Harapin natin ngayon ang katotohanan sa kahirapan. Sobrang corruption sa gobyerno kaya naggihirap ang pinas.

        2. Harapin natin ngayon ang katotohanan sa kahirapan. Sobrang corruption sa gobyerno kaya naggihirap ang pinas.

          You finally admitted it, Eduardo! Good on you. Now enough of that BS you keep saying about BS Aquino’s achievements.

        3. “Puro kayo panahon ni marcos. Di na natin maibabalik yun. Harapin natin ngayon ang katotohanan sa kahirapan. Sobrang corruption sa gobyerno kaya naggihirap ang pinas.”

          Hindi sa corruption iyan. Sa KULTURA iyan. Iyan ang buong katotohanan.

          At hindi yung mga mala-propaganda mong eklavu. 😛

        4. I’m very sure that Juan dela cruz a.k.a. eduardo would be totally pissed and say nothing because of this:

          Fact is your claim is BS. Isn’t as bad as the biggest BS which is the 1987 constitution, which you love to defend. Priorities please. The reason WHY there is rampant corruption is because of how the people VIEW the government as a spectator sport, put people like Noynoy, other affluent familial last names and former showbiz people to politics, then when s&&& breaks out, they react as if they weren’t aware of the repercussions.

          I repeat: hindi corruption ang puno’t dulo ng kahirapan kundi KATANGAHAN, SOBRANG PAGPA-PARTY AT KATAMARAN.

          Iyan ang buong katotohahan. It’s all Yellow Propaganda that you’re spewing. Wala na bang iba? 😀

      6. ANG HUSAY MO NAMANG MAGSALITA. WAG MO NA SANA IPAHALATA ANG KAMANG-MANGAN MO SA NASABING BNPP. HINDI GAGAWIN ANG MGA NPP SA MUNDO KUNG DELIKADO. MAY TAMANG PROSESO LANG IYAN, AT YAN ANG HINDI NAIINTINDIHAN NG MGA KATULAD MO!

      7. Don’t you know that the BNPP was located away from fault line according to phivolcs.. Also the containment was design very thick to sustain a very high pressure in case of failure and after that containment is a 1 meter thick reinforced concrete wall incase the metal containment cant handle the pressure. The BNPP is also located in a high elevation so that high waves or storm surge cant reach it. BNPP was tested at ang kulang na sana noon ay ang nuclear fuel pero dun na umeksena ang mga aquinos. Ang BNPP ay kasabay ng KORI 2 ng Korea at gumagana.. In fact nanganak na ang kori 2 nila at ang baba ng cost of electricity nila. Kung sana natuloy noon yan.. 5 pesos na sana per kwh mo ng kuryente..

    2. “Marcos’ assertion is now debatable, up notches from downright disgusting. History has clearly showed what happened after the Marcos government was ousted. He was actually right; patuloy na bumagsak ang Pilipinas (the Philippines started and continued a downward trend.” —He was right. However, it is not because of the BNPP, but because Marcos institutionalized corruption and stole the people’s money and gold out of the country. Patuloy na babagsak ang Pilipinas? You do not need an intelligent brain to figure that out.

      1. British, Spain and American, Chinese, Malaysian Institutionlized corruption in this Nation. Stole the peoples land and resources out the country. These people are the oligarch and they don’t want to leave this country. they are still here and commanding our leaders. if they don’t follow, they will end up as a corrupt leader. destroy their personality and the rest of their family. all who sat in Presidential seat must follow, the cronies and even we the citezens of this nation. Don’t talk like knew it all behind all these corruption history came from. The problem is, we Filipino easily trust others, very hospitable and religious. We were molded by different corrupt nations. thought their religion and took advantage of us. That is their weapon. Who do you think stop BNPP and Why? stop blaming athers. be reasonable and teach yourself and your future wisely. people are no longer stupid now a days. just click ang type and you will know all of the answers that you are looking for. most of all.. you know nothing about others too. listen and you will learn something new. don’t use your mouth pinpointing others.

        1. You forget two things, though:

          1 – homegrown Filipino oligarchs were the reason why the BNPP was mothballed;

          2 – homegrown Filipino oligarchs are curtailing the country’s progress

        2. apparently you do not know the difference between corruption and institutionalized corruption. also, china, malaysia?!?! really? you are ridiculous.

  2. Knowing Filipino pride, they probably want filipino workers in the plant rather than outsource expertise in nuclear energy, dahil “ang galing talaga ng pinoy!”. It might end up like Union Carbide chemical plant in Bhopal, where the Indian govt wanted it run by Indians, who at that time were still too immature to be running a chemical plant, so they made an agreement with Union Carbide the parent company to stay out of their way. Moral of the story, big disaster, lots of people died.

    1. Maybe those who plan to run the plant can get immunity from local politicians along with other incentives. Pinoy pride has nothing to do with this one.

      1. yeah but it kind runs in similar veins. Employ people because of their nationalities, not because of their skill. Kinda same with Pinoy pride – cheer for the person due to nationality and not for skill.

  3. I’m not sure I grasp the logic here. The first part of the article cites why Filipino culture and nuclear power technology are not a good match, then the second part of the article condemns the post Marcos leaders for agreeing with you.

    I personally think it was wrong to start the plant, right to stop it, and correct to use it for some other worthwhile effort. Hell, a school is okay. And I cringe whenever I hear anything that smacks of apology for Marcos.

    1. You’re thinking too much from the perspective of governments and less from the perspective of the broader and deeper cultural context of why Philippine society consistently fails to take on board thinking, practices, and approaches that will enable it to compete. And yet we as a society continue barrelling down the course to chronic failure we had set for ourselves.

      Double whammy failure is what it is and is what is the Philippines.

      1. I’m wondering what you think about the four-casino project being built in Manila. Will it reflect “chronic failure”, or energize the tourism market? I tend to think it will energize tourism, and along with the call center business, represent a good anchor for the old city. I think even technologically proficient nations, like Russia and the US have botched nuclear plants, so I don’t see pulling out of this one in the Philippines as backward. It is a case of realistic, correct thinking.

        1. I think it reflects chronic failure, as does the call center industry, to develop sustainable and productive economic drivers.

        2. Say hey, BenK. Interesting. I was reading an article about the call centers today. It claims that a considerable share of Manila commercial construction is for call centers, and it gave the example of one center with 3,000 agents operating on the top floor of a mall building. It has career paths for agents, and an onsite university. The gist of the article was that it is a thriving business.

        3. bnpp was a plan for to save the country from power shortages. an outlook into the growth of the economy. this would have prevented the power shortages in luzon in the early 90’s. but well, they didnt want to use something built by marcos. and like you, the govt didnt want an apology to marcos or the people if they would use the bnpp eventually.
          as for the call centers, i’ve been there. it may be true that these centers are giving jobs to people, more than a typical clerk, it’s definitely not a career path of an engineer, or a graduate of business ad. but since we don’t have jobs for these fresh grads. they go into call centers and earn something to survive. working a 10pm to 7am shift isn’t something you’d want to do for the rest of your life. 3000 jobs and 60-70% are fresh grads, that never imagined after getting a degree in something else, be working for a call center.
          as for the casino project, who’d be playing? europeans? as we lost already the last direct flight to the philippines from amsterdam? there are better casinos in macau, genting highlands, singapore, hk. and some casinos give food for free. even if you just play 10$usd. i’ve been in some casinos in cambodia and vietnam. common drinks like tea and juices and sometimes beer are in a common area where customers could just get what they want. food anytime they want, unlike w/ pagcor, even visitors have to pay. nothing is free in our casinos. my point? i think the casino project you’re talking about will be a flop as there are better casinos with our asean neighbors.

        4. Jose, I think the call centers are managed by foreigners (like Americans), so the bigger ones install the kinds of rewards for excellence, and a path into management is one of them. That is a good discipline to install in a nation that is so nepotistic that it blocks opportunity by hiring friends and favorites.

          The main market for the Manila casinos will be Koreans and Chinese, and the total investment being made by the four anchor casinos is 5 billion pesos. The richest barons in the Philippines are behind it, so it has a certain critical mass to it. Rather like the successful mega-malls.

        5. @Jose Maria Espiritu:

          Funny. Last time I was in a PAGCOR casino, they gave me free food and coffee. I guess the experience is different now.

          If you’re talking about the casinos planned for construction, you might be surprised. Don’t give up your bet just yet.

    2. You are still here? I think deep inside you really like the whipping you get here. You are starting to look like a loser.

      Aren’t you satisfied with the kudos you get from the likes of Manuel Buencamino? C’mon, Joe. Admit it. Your pro-PNoy buddies don’t stimulate your brain that much compared to the GRP peeps that’s why you keep coming back. 😉

      1. dude, why do you undermine the quality of the article and discussion by taking things to personal level? You think you are insulting me, but I’m immune. Meanwhile you are tossing a pile of garbage into Fallen Angel’s worthwhile article.

        1. @Joe

          Your presence stinks up the whole blogsite. Your “thoughts” are not needed here.

          Go back to Pro-Pinoy and let the pro-PNoys lick your wounds. You are too full of yourself.

        2. not all of them, c cube i think are owned by the lopezes. and yes, americans, most of them, i worked for 2. but still, a fresh grad who graduated b.a. or engineering, would end up in a call center? and become mngt? for customer service? why the heck did he go into college in the first place? an english major undergrad could do it. as long as you are fluent. or for anyone who could, for that matter. and to brianitus, what casino was that? last time i was in a pagcor casino, the coffee was the only thing free. unlike here in vietnam or cambodia. when you play, you could order anything on their menu. regardless of how much your playing with.

          and construction of casinos? this will help our energy crisis? i just pointed out to joe about his argument, i wouldn’t want to get into the details too much. energy is the problem here.

        3. Jose, yes, energy is a problem, and so is the lack of jobs and lack of wealth. Imagine the scale of this project. 5,000 hotel rooms, thousands of gaming tables that must be manned, security, restaurants. Flow-down to taxis and beach resorts, airlines, the works.

        4. @Jose Maria Espiritu

          You didn’t ask me when was the last time I was in a casino. That was in the Paranaque complex about 6 years ago. LOL. That’s why I said “I guess the experience is different now.”

          As for the casinos, I referred to your point about having competition.

          Just to add, the market will still be your fellow Asians, mainly Koreans and Japanese. They’re the closest. Ilocos Norte’s Fort Ilocandia got its share of tourists using the direct to the casino flights approach.

          I agree with your point above about the call centers. It is sad that people cannot practice the field they wanted to explore in school.

        5. Brianitus, that is an affliction anywhere. I studied Radio and Television Arts and ended up working for a bank. Gotta be fluid to succeed. The call centers are professional businesses, and there are steps up, from agent to supervisor, and up. Indeed, the need as I understand it is for people who can think on their feet, not a strength taught in Philippine schools.

    3. Mali tlga ang pgkakagawa nito umpisa plang. Dpat tlga hnd na nging presidEnte itoNg si Marcos na ngiwan sa ating ng korupSYoN sa bANSA

      1. Nope. The Cory administration is much more worse in terms of corruption. Oh yeah, you’re a gullible fool who believes in Yellow propaganda.

      2. Ngunit hindi naman ginawan ng lunas ng Tita Cory mo ito kasi paghihiganti at galit lang ang naisip niya. Imbis na kapakanan ng buong bansa inisip, ung sa pamilya at kaibigan niya lamang siya tumutok.

        May kakulangan man ung BNPP, tinapalan pa ng isa pang mali ni Tita Cory sa pamamagitan ng di-paggamit sa kanya. Ayan naranasan namin habang lumalaki ung mga brownout na kung saan kilalang kilala ung Tita mong dilaw ang baga.

      3. mejo malayo sa artivle ang comment ko..pero the Yellowtards are famous for misusing resources…Just take the Corona impeachment…It was very stupid to lie on oath on how, when and why the LRA used and stopped using the software to gain information about Corona’s alleged properties…

      4. kaya sinarado yang bnpp at nag blackout nung 90’s sa pinas. ano pinalit? ipp ni ramos, pero di naman nya kasalanan ang pagpasok ng ipp, kung kumikbak sya dun, ibang usapan na yun. walang ginawa yung pinalitan nya para bigyan ng aksyon ang energy crisis. pinabayaan e. so gusto mo mangyari sa govt e short sighted development. gagawa lang ng solution every 6yr term nila, hindi magfoforecast ng problema na 20years ahead?

    4. Joe, where did you get the understanding about the second part? I criticized the post Marcos leaders for doing either nothing about the BNPP, or the wrong thing. They were unable to start initiatives for Filipinos to accept nuclear energy despite being in the best position to do so.

      You will find this unfair, but by sheer luck of the draw, the biggest chances to elevate the Philippines to the forefront in nuclear research landed on the laps of mother and son. And they both squandered their respective opportunities to learn from the mistakes in Chernobyl and Fukushima. Devastatingly.

      The METTS study (sixth from the bottom link under additional references) cites the nuclear energy rehabilitation as the quickest to complete and cheapest to do project, although the power output would be much lower compared to the fossil fuel conversion options.

      I don’t think continuing to use the plant would have been a loss of face for the post-Marcos governments. But if that was more important to them than, say, alleviating energy problems, who am I to argue?

      1. Fallen Angel, sorry about the late response. I lost your comment in the clutter, fighting chickens marching about and all. I understand better now re. Marcos, thanks.

        Your last paragraph is critical of recent presidents for not getting nuclear unstuck. Maybe they are just realists.

        The shortcomings of Filipino society that you mention at the outset are not hypothetical or easily dismissed. Buildings are built on the fly with no maintenance money in the financial pro-forma, so they deteriorate and are soon junky and bankrupt. Or PLDT overpays on dividends and finds it does not have the money to improve customer service, so service sucks. Or the American FAA will not let Philippine airlines add more flights because maintenance in the Philippines is so poor. When “shoddy” is the common way of doing things, I find it hard to support nuclear. Establish a track record of professionalism in building and maintaining complex equipment (like the planes we fly on fer crissake), and I’d agree nuclear is a good path. I like it for the U.S. But I wouldn’t today want to live within 200 kilometers of a Philippine plant, and Bataan is just a good breeze from downtown Manila.

        “Societal” risk I’d call it, and it is markedly higher in the Philippines. You can’t maintain a nuclear plant like you do those old diesel trucks hauling coconuts down the mountain, which were at one time driven by Japanese soldiers. The precision, the discipline, is a lot more demanding. “So show me da discipline!” that proves the Philippines can do world-class construction and maintenance of the most intricate and dangerous of machines this side of the international space station. (That challenge is not to you, personally, but to the pro-nuke lobby.)

        1. Joe, I almost completely agree with what you said above, except for one tiny little detail:

          “Your last paragraph is critical of recent presidents for not getting nuclear unstuck. Maybe they are just realists.”

          Do you accept, then, that by definition, realists pretend a problem does not exist, and hope it just goes away? That’s exactly what they did with the BNPP. I do not.

          Maybe if you said that they admit they couldn’t do anything about it, that would’ve sounded better, but it is still just shows gross incompetence.

          As benign0 said above, Filipinos fail to see the many opportunities that can enable to compete on a global scale. This lack of broader thinking has been pinning us down for years.

          When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Sound familiar, Joe? The post Marcos presidents, however, did not make lemonade. All they did was keep complaining that they were being thrown, or that they couldn’t eat the lemon because it was too sour.

        2. Pardon me if I butt in this conversation, Joe but Filipinos do have the discipline and the capability for technical know-how for maintaining a nuclear plant.

          Scores of Fil-Am engineers working in your country, heck, even in NASA, prove this.

          Fallen Angel is most probably lamenting the culture of unenlightenment plaguing my country that limits the things that these gifted people can do here, that’s why they’re in another place instead.

        3. Ronald,

          I know that Filipinos can do good and excel in any field they want to go in, but you’re right. The skills that we gain abroad, or even here, are useless in a societal environment that does not nurture or outright belittles them.

        4. Ronald, good point, and Fallen Angel provides a good perspective on it. The supervision, government engagement, opportunities for kickbacks, cutting the edges, can undermine the most capable technicians. The framework is bad.

  4. There were also studies which state that coal-powered plants also spew radioactive materials but tend to be ignored by anti-nukes.

    BNPP was also criticized for being built on a geologically hazardous location. But then, so is La Mesa Dam. And no one is giving a d.a.m.n on the latter one.

    1. AnOther hearSay. AnOther hearSay. BnpP will be remembereD as a faileD project becAuse of the greEdinesS of Marcos.

      1. Is your shift key broken or something? Besides the fact that your arguments (that’s being generous, calling them “arguments”) are no more substantial than the broken condom that was apparently the root cause of your existence,

        (See, that’s an ad hominem. It’s no more a good argument technique than yours, but at least it’s a technique. And I’m good at it. Try to be good at something.)

        reading your mindless drivel is all the more annoying because you type in a manner that most kids grow out of by age 12.

        BNPP will be remembered, is remembered as a failure of St. Cory the Vindictive Harpy, for arbitrarily cancelling the project and not replacing it with something else. Read some news and analysis other than what you get from your Two-Minute Hate, you’ll see. Whatever flaws BNPP may have had, Cory let the original creator off the hook entirely by doing something even more stupid as a response. Which is what that family historically has been good at.

        1. Hey, I wouldn’t be surprised if Vincenzo is a sadistic criminal who loves to murder innocent people. The Aquino-Cojuangcos are also like that. 😛

        2. I think vincenzo’s brain is stuck on “mega moronic mode” if he keeps typing like that.

      2. Most of your posts are based on hearsay. Contradicting yourself, hypocrite?

        The greediness of the oligarchy is much worse than the ‘greediness’ of Marcos. You call the BNPP as a ‘failed’ project because you believed on Yellow proganda, telling you it’s a ‘failed’ project. And Cory is a lame president so she tells you that.

        You want proof? Just read ‘Greed and Betrayal’ by Cecilio Arillo.

        1. Hus, asa ka pang basahin ni Vincenzo yan, eh obvious naman na binabayaran siya para manggulo lang sa site na ito.

          Obvious troll is obvious.

      3. as benK said below. failed by marcos, obviously since the one who replaced him didnt want to start it up. and the one who replaced him would be remembered also as someone who didnt do anything and i quote “replace it with something else”. and alam ko natanong ko na syo ito e, ano bang truth behind dyan sa capital letters et al mo?

    2. People would rather ignore the black smoke and soot that they see everyday instead of making sure that everything that can be controlled about nuclear materials protocol is.

      Yes, the BNPP was originally planned on Bagac, but it was transferred to Morong because of the elevation relative to sea level that it provided.

  5. Nice article, FallenAngel. This captured my sentiments about the Nuclear Power Plant; my sheer disappointment about its unused potential.

    Filipinos were too scared to handle nuclear energy, and now they barrage the administration with complaints about the poor quality of energy in this country, when they also have themselves to blame for their cowardice.

    1. And the governments take after the people they represent. They, in turn, were either scared or ill-equipped too.

      Every administration after Marcos had a wealth of resources it could have called upon to help harness nuclear energy. Yet they either did nothing, or ultimately lost an uphill battle with ignorant civil interest groups who weren’t willing to listen to hard data.

      The BNPP may have had defects, as cited in the study done immediately after Marcos was done as President, but the spotlight will always be on Cory’s administration because they did nothing about it and set the precedent in doing so. They allowed it to become the $150k a day debt that ended in 2007. The BNPP stands as one of the biggest white elephants ever in the Philippines.

      I criticized equally all five post-Marcos administration for not taking the initiative in light of the Chernobyl and Fukushima incidents, but the brunt of the inaction falls on the two Aquino administrations. Cruel and unfair as that may seem, mother and son each had a chance to solve the country’s energy problems and elevate the Philippines to the forefront. They didn’t.

  6. Are they talking about this again? Who’s pushing for it?

    If this idea takes off, it’ll be better that the BNPP be run by the private sector. Pinoys can run it provided they are properly trained. Experts can be hired to run more critical parts of the plant.

    The character flaws mentioned won’t come into play if it’s run by the private sector. The whole essence of the business will be to ensure profitability on a long term basis. Maintenance is a critical part of that. If the people can’t do it, the company can fire the persons responsible.

    1. I must say I do not trust the private sector as well. It is an epidemic. The Filipino culture is the problem. Imagine in the BPO industry, rank and file steal information from clients and management turns a blindside to it just to increase profit. We as a nation is the problem and not many of us are actually willing to do something about it. We enjoy playing the victim card. When others decide not to play along, the mob kills them. And the worst part is, they drag you to hell.
      Good planning is as good as nothing if the people who will run the project are unconcerned and does not have enough passion. We as a nation are bunch or apathetic fools wanting people to love and care for us.

      1. So, if no one wants to bet on the Philippines, what’s the point in trying to fix it?

        No organization is perfect. That is where leadership comes in. Looking at the BPO industry, and how you described it, my bet is that the culture in that type of organization cannot match the requirements of a nuclear power plant.

        People keep pointing out what’s wrong. What’s next?

        1. @kabayongtao:

          Us GRP readers support the likes of Gordon and Gibo and not idiots like Noynoy.

          Those two can control the power plant. 🙂

        2. @Parallax:

          TamuH!

          Homer works in a nuclear power plant. And he’s always at odds with Mr. Smithers. 😛

        3. Hey, the private sector can indeed do it! The North Luzon Expressway is one shining example.

          Just don’t let the Lopezes run it, is all I can say. Every business they invest in save for media broadcasting fails. ^_^

    2. it would be cheaper energy if the govt would run it. but, SMC’s interested among others

      http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/67213/economy/companies/korean-firm-eyeing-revival-of-bataan-nuclear-plant (2007 article)

      http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/282641/smc-keen-bataan-nuke-ppp-projects (2010 article)

      and the 15th congress is looking into it. but the bill was sent to the energy com. headed by, another yellow rep. that rep magsaysay was blaming before for not acting on bills sitting on desk of the energy com chairman in the house.

      NO. HB01291

      FULL TITLE : AN ACT MANDATING AN IMMEDIATE VALIDATION PROCESS WHICH SATISFIES INTERNATIONALLY ACCEPTED NUCLEAR POWER INDUSTRY NORMS TO DETERMINE THE BATAAN NUCLEAR POWER PLANT’S OPERABILITY CULMINATING IN EITHER THE IMMEDIATE REHABILITATION, CERTIFICATION AND COMMERCIAL OPERATION OR, THE IMMEDIATE PERMANENT CLOSURE AND SALVAGE VALUE RECOVERY, OF THE BATAAN NUCLEAR POWER PLANT, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
      BY CONGRESSMAN/WOMAN COJUANGCO, KIMI S.
      DATE FILED ON 2010-07-13

      1. Cheaper? That’s assuming they have the money to run it. What about maintenance?

        The Phil. Gov’t has a good track record of keeping things running in tiptop condition. That’s something that one will say in an ideal world.

        The government sucks in managing its power assets. Kaya nga may energy shortfall tayo eh. Let’s just call a spade a spade.
        Bano ang gobyerno sa ganitong klaseng proyektong pangmatagalan.

        Yes, SMC is active in energy. The Lopezes are din.

        1. you missed the point of my post, smc wants to operate bnpp. and the koreans too. and congress, led by kimi cojuangco (daughter-in-law ni danding) is passing a bill to look into it, possibly to sell it, (to cojuangcos maybe? i dont know)

        2. SMC is interested in a lot of things. I won’t be surprised if they suddenly pop up as a power supplier in Mindanao.

          I mainly referred to your point in letting government run it.

          As for the bill, I think they should also look into the PSME report. The writer has a link to it.

  7. Nuclear power is still in the infancy stage in our present technology. There is too much waste in the production of energy. Safety is still wanting. Filipino technicians and nuclear engineers, have become OFWs already. Do you believe they will come home to operate the Bataan Nuclear Plant? I don’t think so. With people that are mentally retarded and mentally ill, leading the country…Renewable Energy is the trend for the future. Improved Nuclear energy will be, but it will take more time…

    1. true, di na babalik ang mga ofw’s natin. tax free sweldo, at bakasyunan na lang ang pinas. unless bigyan sila ng offer na they really cant resist, which is close to impossible. there’s a huge possibility of RE though. gumagana na naman ang malampaya, wonder if it’s possible for that power to be sent to mindanao?

      http://www.doe.gov.ph/ER/Oil.htm (there’s also a link to our natural gas reso)

      malampaya, as per doe, is supplying 40% of luzon’s power, since 2002. gma inaugurated the 2600mw gas to power plant then. it should have been erap, kaso, we all know what happened.

        1. great, so its a monopoly? lopez has gas from malampaya plus meralco? wow. yun lang

    1. So does Fukushima. Yet the Japanese didn’t hesitate to take action ASAP.

      Oh yeah, making pathetic excuses doesn’t make you a good person. 🙂

      1. Tepco reduced the cliff height of Daiichi’s location to ease the hauling up of equipments and material. Maybe the damage wouldn’t be as severe as it was today.

        It was a stupid move since their simulations showed that giant tsunamis are possible in that area. Pft.

        1. Haha, you got me there. 🙂

          But still, Japan had taken action on that. It’s all that matters.

    2. If you read the accompanying links, the BNPP was designed to withstand a magnitude 8 earthquake. The technical assessment was done by foreign evaluators aside from local engineers.

      Kung nakayanan ng Hapon na magkaroon ng NP kahit na mas malakas at madalas ang lindol sa kanila, bakit tayo hindi? Kasi pabaya tayong mga Pinoy bilang tao.

    3. and kahit ang ibang npp’s ng japan, or ng ibang bansa. siguro naghahanap ka lang ng rason. at ngayon sinasabi mo may earthquake fault, since when ang huling earthquake dun? 20yrs ago. di ba? in 20yrs, nakinabang na “sana”. pero, ano ginawa? wala.

  8. Mapangahas, mayabang at walang-galang magsalita ang manunulat na ito. Kadalasa’y ang mga ganitong nilalang as walang kakayahan mamuhay sa isang lipunang-demokratiko na may ibinibigay na pang-unawa sa magkakaibang opiniyon. Dapat bumalik sa eskuwelahan ang manunulat na ito para maturuan ng magandang-asal.

    1. IKAW ang dapat bumalik sa eskuwelahan because you are missing the point. BTW, are you that stupid or you are just trolling.

      You just want to make an excuse. IKAW ang walang kakayahan na mabuhay sa isang lipunang-demokratiko dahil ikaw ang umaabuso tnito. Am I right?

    2. Maybe it’s you who isn’t fit to live in a democratic country which respects different opinions since you try to put down the author for… having a different opinion.

      Btw, La Mesa Dam is also near a fault line.

    3. ano? san mo nakuha yan? 7 minutes ago, sabi mo

      taliba on April 9, 2012 at 10:10 am

      Isinawalang-bahala ng manunulat na ang BNPP ay nakatungtong sa isang earthquake fault. Siguro po’y hindi siya nakatira sa Bataan o sa Luzon.

      tapos ngayon mapangahas etc? bilis mo rin humusga ‘no? so anong pagiging demoktratikong sinasabi ang ginawa mo? ni hindi ka inaano ng manunulat, tapos susumbat ka ng ganyan na parang ikaw mismo ang tinitira ng manunulat? yan ang idea mo ng democrasya? labo.

      1. Isa pa itong si taliba na “obvious troll”.
        Halatang di binasang mabuti ang lathalang sinulat ni Fallen Angel. Gumamit ka kasi ng Ctrl+F, ‘no.

        Ayon sa artikulo mismo:

        “The Philippines is indeed also part of the Ring of Fire, but compared to Japan we experience much fewer earthquakes and lesser in magnitude. The BNPP houses a light water reactor (LWR), particularly a pressurized water reactor (PWR), so therefore it would not have suffered from the problems found in Chernobyl RBMK reactors. The PWR is also much safer than the boiling water reactor (BWR) found in the Fukushima plant. It is designed to generate 621 MWe of electricity, which is a big help in addressing our ever ballooning energy demand. The concern of any effect of seismic activity is addressed by the fact that it is situated 18m above sea level. In contrast, the Fukushima plant was lowered to 10m from the original height of 35m, but they did not take into account the effect of tsunamis on the plant.”

        Si taliba pala ang dapat bumalik sa paaralan, kasi simpleng pangangalap lang ng impormasyon hindi alam gawin, eh nakatambad na nga sa pagmumukha niya.

  9. FallenAngel,

    Quite an informative and insightful article although I think a more appropiate title would be

    “The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant: a testament of pinoys’paralysis.”

    Pinoys can actually be proud that the Philippines managed such a feat.

    I do know that Malaysia is studying and contemplating of building a nuclear power station even though Malaysia have so much excess capacity with the Bakun Dam coming online this year.

    The only other reason which I think of why the Govt is taking this step is because of “National Interest”? The Lynas Rare earth project reeks of this as well though the public opposes it because of enviromental concerns.

    1. Just in case this following statement is misunderstood:

      “Pinoys can actually be proud that the Philippines managed such a feat.”

      It refer to the fact that the Philippines is the first country in ASEAN to achieve this.

      🙂

    2. Hmm, Pinoys’ paralysis. Fair enough, I like that. It fits like a glove. 🙂

      And that’s the sad part, the first to achieve a chance to use nuclear energy, but bogged down by politics and fear, therefore it never got off the ground.

  10. Do we even have experts to study these things?

    I think we do have them, somewhere around the globe, and probably with a new nationality.

  11. only a small bunch of anti pinoy elites are against this nuclear tech. Ask any ordinary people. From squatter areas to small businessmen and they will surely tell you that they are willing to take the risk just like rich countries before us who now lorded the world with their economic power.

    1. The sad part is that these anti pinoy elites, as you called them, claim to speak for the majority but cannot make the claim of talking to them.

  12. Only one out of 54 nuclear reactors is now operating in japan. Last summer they chose to conserve electricity rather than have some of reactors started. They who have the nuclear power technology and experience, but had to learn from their bitter experience with fukushima. The fact that BNPP, just like other nukes in japan sits on an earthquake fault should not be discounted.
    Ang problema kase sa nuke kapag nagkmeltdown, eh di naman basta basta mo na lang isasara. Hindi ganoon kadali ang magstabilize para sa radioactive materials na ang half life eh mahigit 20taon! Ang clean-up ng fukushima eh naeestimate na 40taon, at maraming bilyong dolyar na budget. Goodluck kung sa pinas mangyari ang nuke disaster, not necessarily from a tsunami kung ano ang kakahinatnan.

    1. As of today, it’s now zero. Japan took the risk, benefited from it for 4 decades, but ultimately lost to mother nature. The Philippines took no risk, left its people in the dark for 26 years, and is still doing so.

      Despite being in a much safer geographical position than Japan, Filipino governments let politics get in the way of progress. The designers had taken as many precautions as possible in case of natural disasters, as I have described above. But to Cory and friends, of course this didn’t matter.

      Good luck trying to get Pinoys to conserve electricity. At the same time, Pinoys have not matured as a people enough yet to fully harness nuclear power. Whether they ever will is another question entirely. Good luck sa radiation containment eh ambagal bagal ng tugon ng pamahalaan, bagyo at lindol pa lang diba?

  13. I would also like to point out that Marcos’ golfing buddy Disini is now hiding in a castle in Austria with the nobleman title that he bought with the stolen money from the project no doubt. The courts here are fighting it out with his family regarding access to the bank accounts with obscene amounts of money thought to be ill-gotten wealth from the project. What rotten people these Disinis are.

  14. Can anyone else imagine what a nightmare it would have been had the BNPP been in operation when Pinatubo erupted?

  15. “The Filipino is too immature, too lazy, and too stupid to handle such a complicated energy source… ” Clearly, this writer is irresponsible. Where did you derive this conclusion? Did you get it from your colonial mind?

    The Bataan Nuclear Powerplant is a serious topic, and if Filipinos are “too immature”, then they wouldn’t be meddling with this.
    If the Filipinos are “too lazy”, then what do you call those OFWs working abroad and the cramped Job Fair scenarios?
    If the Filipinos are “too stupid to handle such complicated energy source”, then what happened to the water-powered car invented by a Filipino which seems more than complicated, rather impossible during his time?

    First few paragraphs: “Bullshit. This article would just be filled with ignorant opinions instead of intellectual ones.”

    Real change for the Philippines hindered through the ignorant writers, like you, and all the other un-Filipino Filipinos.
    Get you facts straight. Do cite your sources.

    1. TROLL. 😛 Fact is that you never get the message of this article.

      You cite things about OFWs and inventions. The Philippines would never need OFWs if there were many opportunities HERE and would let foreign investors in. Inventions would be a get-go if they were supported by the government.

      Real change will occur if people like you would stop bickering and stop stating something trivial. Real change will occur if people will stop clinging on MEDIOCRITY and move forward by discarding our dysfunctional culture. Haven’t you realized? The Philippines HATE critical smart people. They HATE efficiency. They HATE order and organization. They HATE the concept of strength and unity in diversity. All the smart people are gone since you can’t do anything with the archaic economical system established by the constitution.

      Nothing will change if ignorant sycophants like you would exist. Noytard much? 😛

    2. Filipinos are too immature, because instead of evaluating the feasibility of the BNPP on its technical merits they let politics, fear, uncertainty and doubt get in the way. They chickened out from even going through with the operation because of “what could happen”, even if the designers had already taken precautions based on the mistakes of previous nuclear incidents.

      Filipinos are too lazy; one of their biggest allergies is following rules and regulations. Pwede-na-yan just won’t cut it in dealing with nuclear technology, unless you want to be adversely affected by the radiation and by-products

      Filipinos are too stupid because they are too immature and lazy, see above.

      Your OFW argument misses the point. They wouldn’t need to be in that position had our government done its part in giving them a reason to stay. Time and time Filipino society has proven that it cannot make sustainable developments, and that it cannot harness its workers industry and potential to be the best it can be.

      Your cramped job fair scenario is a perfect example of too much workforce, too few jobs available. Again, it’s another example of Filipino government and society’s miscalculation. This argument misses the point too.

      If you want to talk about that water-powered car, good question. You tell me. What happened to it? Where is the inventor now? Was he accused of being a fraud? Did he ever patent his invention? Is his design still in tune with current times? You tell me why the inventor didn’t capitalize on the opportunity to spread the good news about his invention.

      Filipinos are immature, simply put, because instead of focusing on bigger things such as issues, they focus on personalities and politicize most debates unnecessarily. Real change is hindered by the Filipinos themselves. If you refuse to see this, you’re one of many who prefer to stay in the rut they are in.

    3. “The Filipino is too immature, too lazy, and too stupid to handle such a complicated energy source… ”

      ….means that the Filipino cannot open his mind to grasp this technology. Its not about technical and engineering stuff, I am an engineer and I am sure Filipinos can handle the technical aspects of a nuclear power plant. Hey, if you have really read the article….it really doesn’t mention anything about any technical/engineering aspect. Come on…..now… you did read it through didn’t you?

      1. Typical Filipinos like Luwalhati Pagbabago is what’s keeping this country underwater. “Invented the water powered car”?!!! LOL, getting hydrogen from water is a science that has been known not long after electricity was discovered. the year is 2013, quit being ignorant. google is your friend.
        It takes more energy to split a water molecule, than the energy from the burning of the hydrogen produced by the process, to make it a viable project. That is also why the hydrogen powered engine is a dead end technology… realistically.
        Direct conversion of stored electrical power (potential energy) to kinetic energy is the most efficient and environmentally friendly method. The (pure) electric car is still the most efficient method of transportation invented. nothing comes close to a battery and motor in lateral efficiency. combine that with a solar charging station, and you have perfection.
        the BNPP is still the best solution to our energy crisis though. all it needs is a competent man at the helm, and a government willing to back him up with everything he needs to make it run safely and smoothly.

  16. Bakit kasi hindi ginamit yang BNPP? Iniisip nyo na gawa ni Marcos? Eh loko pala kayo, nagbayad tayo ng mahigit $1B tapos hindi gagamitin? Tapos magrereklamo kayo na ang mahal ng bill nyo? Mga ungas pala kayo eh. Over reacting lang kayo pagdating sa salitang NUCLEAR, pumapasok kasi agad sa utak nyo eh yung NUKE WEAPONS. Ibang iba ang Nuke weapon sa Nuke power plant! Mga Pinoy kasi magresearch muna kayo bago kayo magrally! Eh yang BNPP ay mas advance pa sa teknolohiyang ginamit sa Fukushima. Irereklamo nyo pa na kesyo gawa ni Marcos. Kaya tayo lalong nabaon sa utang hindi dahil sa BNPP, dahil yan sa mga utak ipis na hindi manlang ginamit ang potensyal ng BNPP. Kung ginamit yan edi may maganda pang naidulot sa ekonomiya natin, edi sana mababa ang bill sa kuryente. Kung kinatatakot nyo eh yung radiation, sus araw araw tayo nakakalanghap ng radiation. Saka ang BNPP ay may mga safety measures once na magleak ang core niya. Hello! 1 metro kaya ang kapal ng semento na nakapaligid sa core niya at merong automatic shutdown ang BNPP kung sakaling magleak. Saka panu magleleak kung well maintain naman diba?! Kunh kinakatakot nyo ay yung possible nuke explosion haha tatawanan ko na lang kayo dahil hindi mangyayare yun sa mga nuke plants na new approach ang ginamit like the BNPP. Alamin nyo muna kasi kung panu gumagana ang nuclear power plant ha.
    Kung gusto ninyo ng argumento mga anti nuclear fan boys, welcome ako diyan. Susupalpalan ko kayo ng sangkatutak na scientific facts, economical facts about nuke power. Papakita ko sa inyo kung gano kayo kaignorante sa Nuke power.

  17. Huwag kasi iboto iyang mga Manilenyos.

    Iboto niyo mga taga probinsya.

    Hayan mas alam nila magtipid at kung papaano gamiting maayos ang mga pasilidad at mga serbisyo na nakalagay na.

    1. Ano na? Wala rin as usual. Habang mahigit 10 ang on-going construction ng bagong nuclear plants sa China at ginagawa na rin ang 4 para sa UAE ng korea na may sariling 20 nuclear plants ang pinas ay nag aaway away pa sa nag iisang unit. Kawawang pinoy bat ang daming tanga…jok lang. Makinig na lang tayo ng gangnam style ng Korea yan ang kayang kaya gayahin ng pinoy – nuclear? wag na di natin alam yan.

  18. so the activist consider it as harmful for health and environment? so tell me more about how healthy the burning of coals and gasoline is for the Filipino people. The lopez will try to perpetuate that they are environmentalist especially ms. gina lopez who oppose the mining here in the philippines, and yet they are burning more expensive fuels. Look at the Lopez, they own the ABS-CBN, such a helpful tool to portray themselves as the good guy pro environment. but don’t forget that they also own the FPIC, the oil pipelines. let me spell that to you O-I-L, and guess what, there are reported leaks and even cases of them dumping these toxic waste to the rivers. Stop favouring these monopolies for their expensive electrical services, think of the greater good. start forgetting the past, start accepting that Ferdinand marcos is a visionary. stop containing the poor from their situations. Start standing now, beat the goddamn system!!!

  19. you may have some valid points but there is no need to Be name calling or putting the people of the phillipines down or just plain name calling and insult , really it is a sign of your own weakness .
    as I said some valid points here about nuclear power but as an instructor of phillipines martial arts and a regular visitor to there country your insults and name calling own de-value your self and any point your trying to make as you only invite the topic to shift from nuclear power to insulting name caling etc .. really the author of this article should edited these parts out and be mature enough to offer appoligeze .

  20. The need to use the nuclear reactor works against the five so-called character flaws.

    The background of the construction of the reactor has nothing to do with conclusions made about Filipinos.

    The Marcos regime is considered right, but it was the same that had the plant constructed and revealed the same flaws discussed earlier.

    Recent reports about Fukushima reveal that the country that is supposed to have the highest reputation in nuclear power safety had business and government officials working with counterparts in the U.S. to hide problems regarding the nuclear power industry. Similar flaws are now being revealed about reactors in the U.S.

    Finally, the reason why the reactor cannot be used is because the IEAE is still evaluating it.

  21. I would try to present briefly the good and bad point of this critical present issue.

    THE GOOD

    Of course, the good things are easily visible; cheaper electricity, more jobs for Filipinos, advancement of Philippine Nuclear Technology, etc., etc…

    Anyway, this would’ve been lowered prices by at least 3/4 the current price, and that’s the modest amount. The maximum practical amount would be half the price; so from P5.01/KwH, it would be at least P3.76/KwH at the modest, and a whopping P2.50/KwH at the maximum practical price.
    The BAD

    Of course, this is where Filipino mentalities get in; the “Bahala na” attitude is most disconcerting, since this attitude is not tolerable and not acceptable and not permitted in such fields of work.

    Also, a big hindrance is the reluctance of the Filipinos to take risks; the normal Filipino tend to take risks only when they are cornered to do so, and they do not take risks for the sake of advancement, but only for the sake of survival. In short, the common Filipino doesn’t take risks for progress, only for the sake they would live another day.

    THE BOTTOM LINE
    The creation of this project was supposed to be a momentous time for our country, but it seemed that the Philippine Government and the Filipino people themselves are afraid to take the risks of this advancement.

    I assume that this reluctance would soon be the downfall of our country and our society as a whole; the successes of America and of other countries such as China, Japan and the EU are not forged by timidity and reluctance, but by blood and taking risks, both measured and unmeasured.

  22. For me maganda nga ito, pero i don’t think we’re ready for this. lalo na s panahon ngayon, mas maraming disasters ang mga nagyayari, nang di natin inaasahan. mga bagyo na akala natin maliit lang, yun pala bagyo at magko-cause pa ng baha. ngi di nga mabigyan ng maayos na evacuation center ang mga taong nasasalanta, panu pa kaya pag nagka aberya ung reactor? for me, mas mganda cguro huwag tayo agad magmadali. mas maganda kung step by step, little by little muna. slowly but surely kumbaga. dapat cgurong siguruhin muna ng gobyerno na may enough funds kung sakaling may disaster na mangyare. kasi kung hindi, sa hirap ng pilipinas, maka survive kaya tayo after such a disaster like this? mas maganda kasing at least SURE and READY kesa naman kung kelan nanjan na ung problema ee tska pa poproblemahin, kung pwede namang pag isipan na agad na solusyon bago pa man mangyare 🙂

    1. We all have the precautions built in to the plant when it was in extended build-repair back in the 80’s. In my opinion, the only things that would now kill the plant is either our weakness in trying to risk ourselves for progress’ sake or maybe a bunker-penetrating bomb. Heck, I’m confident that even a mark 80 bomb wouldn’t even reach the steel plating.

  23. FallenAngel, how dare you say that “the Filipino is stupid”? Aren’t you a Filipino yourself? Filipinos aren’t stupid. We are in fact excel in anything we do and are very much wanted to be part of big global companies. And for your information, criticizing your own race as being stupid DOES NOT make you any clever. You should feel remorseful for yourself.

    1. It seems you truly missing the point on reading this article.

      Please, there is no such thing as RACE. 😛

      Stop being balat-sibuyas and look at the bigger picture. Basa ka pa, iha.

    2. Let me make it really simple. How many times do the Filipinos as a nation put in a totally unqualified moron in a position of power? Filipinos when it comes to the ballot box look more at popularity than qualifications. That qualifies as stupid doesn’t it?

      Read almost any GRP blog post and usually you find concrete examples of stupidity. Ask yourself, is GRP making it up or are the cited examples not indicative of stupidity? Sorry, driving the streets or walking the streets of the NCR I always see stupidty and what’s worse is I see stupidity accepted as normal life.

      I was born here and I will likely die here, who knows very soon with the stupidity of the way people drive and how no one is held accountable. No drunk driving laws, MMDA stopping only private cars for swerving and not jeeps or buses. That is stupidity right? Sorry if you don’t see stupidity in the pinoy I am not sure what cave out there has Internet access.

      Just because a few pinoys can distinguish themselves internationally makes no excuse for stupidity to thrive on Philippine soil. BTW every lunch time , what do pinoys all over tune into? High brow intellect? kisretsa08 wake up and smell the intellectual septic tank that pinoys gladly live in and are proud to live in.

    1. There’s only one reactor in the BNPP, it’s a PWR.

      TRIGA reactor – isn’t this the PRR-1 that was managed by the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI) until 1988? I think it’s different from the one in the BNPP.

      1. This information is neither open to the public nor secret, so I gather that I could share it here.

        The plan was that the PWR reactor (so-called “Reactor complex-1”) be a testbed of whether nuke power plants are feasible for our country. Then, the next plan would be building successive reactor complexes. We were unsure whether to continue using PWRs or pursue different types of reactors (BWRs, RBMKs, etc.), so the government decided to train the upcoming nuclear scientists of that generation with the advanced technology of General Atomic to help with that decision. The TRIGA is just a demonstrator and was supposed to teach successive batches of nuclear scientists.

    1. It is indeed true that the current plant is a museum, but second-generation nuke plants aren’t at all obsolete. Of course, we need to update some systems in the control room and at the radiation protection protocols, but the technology in itself isn’t obsolete at all. Although I agree renewable energy sources are good for the long run, their efficiency in terms of power generation in correlation to the amount of funds invested on them is ghastly compared to nuke plants. Nuke plants could generate 500MW using the same amount of funds that could build a 10MW wind farm.

  24. I like this article it shows the true dirt era of this country
    Sayang talaga kung maayos paren ang pinas katulad nung hawak tayo ni marcos kahit madame siyang ninakaw naka reach paren tayo sa top siguro if today marcos still handles the philippines I think it would be fantastic no more jeeps but city buses (government controlled/owned),no triycles then many subways which is also goverment owned then I also look up of having bullet trains in this country not like pnoy implemented they run on diesel fuck you … !!! But still on construction not like japanese bullet trains that runs on electricity which makes it cleaner and enviroment friendly edsa will not be a large parking lot and poverty will not increase that way today
    I love you fallen angel
    Fuck you on those anti-nukes this era is running on nuclear power bitches stop those coal burning lung stopping electric makers
    Btw nuclear power plant and nuclear warheads or etc are not desaymm hindi magkapareho intiendes hahaha 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

  25. >Vinzenzo

    Talagang ang laki mong tanga! Mga taong katulad mo ngayon ang may hawak ng gobyerno. Mga trabaho n’yo ba ay sisihin ang lahat ng nakaraan? Wala ba kayong solosyon sa mga problema ng Filipinas?
    Puro kayo Punyeta! Magbitiw na kayong lahat at dapat kayong mga bulok ay palitan; mas may pakinabang pa ang mga daga kumpara sa inyo.

  26. Here’s what my friend had to say:

    Listen up folks. Fusion is, hopefully, coming someday. But it’s not here yet and may not be for decades. Until then, we have just four options for energy:

    a) stop using energy entirely and go back to a pre-industrial society;

    b) continue letting our addiction to fossil fuels ruin our environment, dictate our economy, and fight our wars, until we run out of them and involuntarily fall back to a);

    c) convert Mindanao into an island of solar and wind farms, because that’s how much area it would take to meet current energy needs;

    d) go nuclear.

    The points are:

    – we have enough uranium (reserves and untapped) to supply 100% of the country’s energy demands until the end of the century. That’s if we got our power only from nuclear. Barring that, there’s plenty of uranium buried elsewhere too, including friendly nations like the United States, Canada and Australia.

    – new breeder reactor techniques allow us to reuse an increasingly significant amount of waste material, extending our usable supply by multiple factors.

    – the potency of fission energy is so efficient, the total solid waste generated by a medium-sized city for the entire lifetime of its population, including charging their electric cars if everyone drove them, would fit into a modest country home, and that’s ignoring breeder techniques. Using coal and gas, that same home would fit the waste produced by just one family in one year.

    – nuclear plants produce no pollution, and no radiation. You could live your entire life next to a functioning nuclear facility, growing and eating crops and drinking from streams, and never receive more than the normal background dose of radiation. Fossil fuel plants constantly eject their waste haphazardly into the atmosphere. A great deal of that waste is radioactive.

    – nuclear facilities are among the safest places you could be, precisely because they are perceived to be so dangerous. The nuclear power industry practices a manic culture of safety, answering to numerous international regulatory agencies which constantly bombard them with tests and inspections. Homer Simpson couldn’t go anywhere near a real plant.

    – it is impossible to make any sort of weapon out of power-grade uranium or plutonium at any point in its cycle. Enriching material to weapons-grade takes a far more involved process; the only way for a bad guy to obtain a nuclear bomb is to steal one that has already been made by a government that knows how.

    – in sixty years, there have been, worldwide, three major nuclear accidents. Three Mile Island was caused by human error; we learned from it and fixed the system. Three Mile Island will never happen again. Chernobyl was incompetence; the Soviets were screwing around without considering the consequences. Chernobyl could never happen here. Fukushima was caused by a natural disaster; we will learn from it, and amend our rules about where to build and how well they’re built. Meanwhile, conventional power plants, particularly in other countries, suffer catastrophic failures on a regular basis.

    If you’ve been led to believe that nuclear is evil, read “Power to Save the World” by Gwyneth Cravens, a first-person investigation of the nuclear industry by a skeptic.

  27. delikado?
    naniwala ka naman.
    in the end, sino nakinabang sa kamangmangan mo?
    syempre yung nagsabi na delikado yun.

  28. i agree with the author. maintenance personnel din ako. pasasaan pa’t mabubuksan din yan.pagdating ng araw na di na tayo bibigyan ng langis mula sa ibang bansa.yan ang punot ugat ng lahat ng yan kung bakit nahuhuli tayo sa teknolohiya.korapsyon di lang sa gobyerno.kaya tayo binubuli ng mga karatig bansa.

  29. Tama yan, buksan muli ang Nuclear Power Plant para bumaba ang binabayadan nating kuryente. Sana matuloy ito..Support natin yan.

  30. Wag ng magsiraan. Hindi porke si Marcos ang gumawa e wala ng maitutulong sa lahat. Sana po suportahan natin ito.

  31. Para sa nag-comment neto
    ——————
    Talagang ang laki mong tanga! Mga taong katulad mo ngayon ang may hawak ng gobyerno. Mga trabaho n’yo ba ay sisihin ang lahat ng nakaraan? Wala ba kayong solosyon sa mga problema ng Filipinas?
    Puro kayo Punyeta! Magbitiw na kayong lahat at dapat kayong mga bulok ay palitan; mas may pakinabang pa ang mga daga kumpara sa inyo.
    ——————
    If I’m not mistaken, Renato Constantino a historian said “Kaya natin pinag-aaralan ang Kasaysayan ay para hindi na maulit ang mga kamalian na makikita natin dito.”

  32. Tama na sisihan. Wala tau mapapala kundi yung panandaliang sarap ng pagbubudyaw nng mali natin. Dyan tau magaling miakipagdebate. hanggang dun lang. Malinaw naman lahat. Kung di lang padadala mga kababayan natin sa brainwashed ng media. At magaral ng tunay na science at history. Hindi puro showbiz at sobrang religion(hindi ko sinabi na masama, opinyun lang). Malamang maiintindihan nila. Hopefully, nasabi ng maayus yung intention ng article na IEDUCATE mga tao at ipakita mga MALI dati.

    Pero sa tingin ko masyado na malala ang problema na me PERMANENT DAMAGE na mentalidad ng mga kababayan natin. Yan ang nagagawa ng media at sa kasamaang palad religion.

    Hindi ko alam kung paanu iexecute mga solution ngayun since matindi na ang global na competition at pressure. KElangang advancing country tau ulit inumpisahan ito ni marcos na kasamahang palad… at yun nga ang di nangyari at natuloy. Malaki ang tsansa na Iba na sana antas ng pmumuhay natin ngayun. Malay natin baka mas malakas pa tau sa japan ngayun kung ipinagpatuloy lang mga planu dati or kahit paanu kasing unlad natin ang singapore na klevel lang natin dati. Anyways balik tau sa solution. Importante ang scientific advancement, research at implementation(kelangan paba ielaborate) dito nakabase ang antas at kalidad ng pamumuhay natin. Quality ng education dapat sapat or higit sa ibang bansa kasama na mga kalidad ng facilities at research center. Sa paraan na ito mas malawak ang pagunawa ng mga kababayan natin unti unti nating malessen ang influence ng old beliefs at maging mas rational.

  33. Panahon na marahil para magmove on tayo at huwag ng isisi sa Rehimeng Marcos ang tungkol sa overprice Bataan Nuclear na yan. Tutal naman ay bayad na ang inutang dyan noong pang 2004. Mag isip tayo ng ibang mapagkukunan ng power supply kaysa matulad pa tayo sa Fukishima na di malaman ang gagawin sa 300tons nuclear waste na nagleleak daily sa Pacific ocean.

    1. Ang mga taong katulad mo ang dahilan kung bakit di umaangat ang bansa. Fukushima agad? alam mo ba kung ilang lindol ang tumama sa Japan at ilan ang Nuclear power plant nila? sa ilang libong lindol na malakas pa sa intensity 5 ang tumama sa japan isang power plant lang ang nasira. At hindi ang lindol ang syang sumira sa fukushima kundi tsunami. Mag isip muna bago mag kumento.

  34. Orion, I have been inside the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in 1997 and recently in 2009. The real reason it can never be fired, and I kid you not, is the fact that THE ENTIRE NUCLEAR CORE AND CONTROLLERS ARE NOT THERE. It’s just a giant shell, and a few dangling wires and some rusted machinery. But no core, no control mechanisms, nothing but a giant empty echoing hollow inside the reactor dome. Big question number one: Did Westinghouse actually complete the nuclear plant as alleged? There are stories that the plant was actually test fired a couple times in 1985. So it should have been complete, right? Big question number two: Where in the world is THE ENTIRE NUCLEAR CORE AND CONTROL MECHANISMS at now? Many are guessing it’s in North Korea or Iran. Joking aside, I wouldn’t be surprised if it were.
    -Matthew Bernardo

    1. i am from bataan too i dont know what is the core but i have to report that most of the plant parts is been stolen by most politician and rebel force in the aquino time which called NPA and they sell at junk shop lol and use it to fund to thier not so nice activity

    2. kumpleto yan kasi pinaandar na yan dati..1977-1984 ang itinagal ko sa BNPP-1..political issue lang yan kaya di pinayagan ng taong bayan na wala naman talagang alam sa Nuclear Power Source..2 units ang ginawa namin sa Guang Dong China..parehas ng system. (presurrized water reactor )..gang ngayon naman walang problema.since 199o pinaandar na..the thing is..nag declare si dating Pangulong Marcos na gagawa sya ng Asian Dollar na hihigitan nya ang palit sa US dollar..then it goes.POLITICAL Issues.gamit ang BNPP-1.ng maupo si Cory.PCGG ang una nyang itinatag..bawal galawin ang yaman ng maharlika.. { Tallano Clan Gold )640k metric tons of Gold..ayaw nila maging mayaman ang Pilipinas.

      1. The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant was never energized the fuel Rods were never delivered it was never licensed by the International Atomic Energy Commission to operate!

  35. As a student pursuing an engineering degree in the US, I have to say using nuclear power is no joke. If the Philippines is to take that power and use it for the people then the mindset has to change, they have to take criticism, do extra research and work to maintain this. I dont even think there are any engineering degrees of that nature in the Philippines and I studied there. If they are to find people to maintain this nuclear power plant, they need competent engineers from the US, Europe and Japan. Planning and stringent workloads.

    1. Most countries more advanced than Philippines takes contractors from other countries to design and develop their nuclear power plant. And after that the same contractor who built the power plant will assign a team from another contractor to take charge of the operation and maintenance of the powerplant until the said country have capable manpower to handle the manpower. At the end of every nuclear power plant project there is a hand over of knowledge from contractors and clients. Thats how other countries learned how to operate, monitor and maintain their nuclear powerplants.

  36. If Filipinos were as stupid as said in this blog. Dapat sana, lahat ng power plant dito sa pinas eh sira at sumabog na. Sumabog ba? Hindi db? Edi ndi careless ang mga Pilipino. Ano ba akala nyong operators ng Power Plants? Mga tambay? Tubero? Construction Workers? Malamang engineers operators nyan at International Standards and Practices ang inaral at inaapply nila sa trabaho nila.

    Nuclear Technology is not as too complicated as what you think it is. It’s the same process with Steam Power Plants but only different power source.

    The technology of operating on the Atomic nuclei is already there BUT THE IDIOTS LIKE THE WRITER OF THIS BLOG KEEP ON PLANTING IN THE HEADS OF THE FILIPINOS OF ITS DANGERS. HOW ABOUT ITS ADVANTAGES? DO YOU EVEN TALK ABOUT IT? No.

    REMEMBER: ALL POWER PLANTS ARE DANGEROUS. Worried about radiation?

    RADIATION ARE AIRBORNE, and almost all our neighboring countries HAVE NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS. If their plants had a leak, whether we like it or not, we will be affected by its radiation. So why are you so afraid? Since we are already surrounded by it?

    Think about it.

    1. Like you have the credentials or knowledge to prove this. Yeah the benefits are good but you talk about it as if it were easy. Typical mindset of someone who is very clueless and isn’t in that line of work, you act as if you’ve done nuclear engineering yourself. Let me tell you something, crawl into that half-assed educational system you call a university in the Philippines and find out how shitty your education is. Your incompetence is amusing at best. Radiation is not just airborne, you have to consider radon decay, x-rays, gamma-rays and electromagnetic radiation; these things can affect life at ground level. Also, yeah other countries have nuclear power however the Philippines is overly incompetent with even trying to prevent black outs from time to time even floods, what makes you think we can handle this type of power? Imbecile.

      1. I respect your opinion but I would like to clear out that I didn’t say it was easy nor was I saying in a way that it was easy.

        Also, I wanted to say that I’ve used the word “radiation” alone as I was BEING IN GENERAL. All specifics you were saying are all radiations and/or effects of it. Right?

        Don’t act like you are smart or clever just because you can enumerate specific names of radiations.

        Our education was shitty? OK, I respect your opinion.
        But may I ask, what is your profession?
        You might probably be a “professional” (I just assumed ‘cuz you act as if you know a lot things)
        but are you acting like one?
        You speak too harsh about people you don’t truly understand.
        And if you’re not a professional, then you’re an ass to speak about these technicalities as if you know too much when you just read it in the internet and have just seen in movies.

        I also find it funny about how rude you speak of us. Ha! Where do you come from? ‘Cuz I already want to assume you’re an American. beacuse i don’t want talk randomly here. If you know what i mean.

        BTW, you were talking about blackouts, it was because of the increased demand but increase in power plants were not as fast as demand’s increase but that is also a safety procedure to avoid further inconvenience but THAT’S NOT WHAT THIS CONVERSATION ARE ALL ABOUT, is it? It’s about the capacity of the Filipinos to handle such technology, if we, Filipinos, like I said, were stupid and less educated as you were pertaining, then we shouldn’t have been able to support, maintain, and protect the power generating plants and citizens of our beloved country.

        …and then you speak of about floods. You are becoming childish here my friend. If you are smart, you should know what I mean.

        Oh. yea, about that ‘as If I have handled Nuclear plants myself’, I actually didn’t, yet.
        I’m a Mechanical Engineering student here and I wasn’t saying I know many things about nuclear plants but I am not foreign about it. I am just pointing out the logical side of this issue.

        Please be decent. You do not have any right to be rude about other people. You’ll never know, you might eat your words someday.
        May you live longer.

        1. You’ve completely missed the point of the entire article. Nowhere near in the article did it say how dangerous BNPP is to Filipinos. Instead, FallenAngel’s iterating how deluded Filipinos are into not approving Nuclear energy.

          If there’s anyone who’s childish here, it’s you. The fact that br0man17 can name different kinds of radiations proves that he is a smart and a clever man, yet you’re too butthurt to accept it. May you live longer to have better English comprehension.

    1. Nice blog, pero problema nito..hindi ito maintindihan ng mga tayo na hindi nakapag aral..at sa walang alam sa field ng engineering world..may ng comment si Stefan sabi niya “Bataan is to far from Mindanao. Does not solve any problems there.”…mga sir at mam.?research muna kung paano tina-transport yun electricity ha..bago mgcomment..at ano ang mga types ng nuclear plant..at isa pa hindi po agad yan makaka operate if hindi pumasa sa standard at safety rules ng International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)..at yun ang dapat e check ng president ng RP if safe na gamitin at ready to operate na..at yun mg ooperate sa power plant..may training pa cla bago pa cla mismo ang mgooperate ng plant ta..ok make your mind more logic the emotional..2015 na po ngayon maginaw na si marcos..

  37. Id like to add my 2 pence and before anyone starts im not American im British but I have visited the Philippines a load of times and would like to tell you what I see with the place. First off theres some of the nicest people to be found out there and thats a credit to yous all but theres also something totally aloof with how people act and think out there compared to how it is in developed nations, I see a half hearted mentality that drives me crazy how laid back and almost unresponsive people can be when theres nothing in it for themselves even if its there job, when inside your screaming will you just hurry up and move whats wrong with you. everything said here about mentality, laziness is all spot on, I come back to your country year after year because its a lovely country with great people but its a double ended sword because what makes the people nice holds them back at the same time, and allows this same government cronies to exploit them even more.In short nothing ever changes there, theres no investment In nothing that is considered important, you see live wires all hanging from the roofs of houses and apartment blocks all tangled up with no maintenance what so ever, its one big death trap and if the Philippine government cant even look after there own peoples safety what chance has the rest of the world got, motorbikes and cars are all flying about the place with not as much as a traffic light in sight, jeepneys loaded to the max with no regard for human safety and everyones all carries scars, I see a incompetent race of people that just carries on generation after generation with the same mafia styled government year after year all doing there best to cut off foreign investment so they don’t miss a trick themselfs, regardless of what benefits it would bring to the country and the people. It seems the only thing people are interested in is karaoke and adobo and that’s basicly because they have no faith in there own government, theres no opportunities for each generation because the countries so stale on the ground and has been forever, so how on earth are the Philippines going to maintain a Nuclear power plant when they cant even maintain the simplest of things like covering up live wires and having effective road safety, all these same governments need to get kicked out, and a new form of government that is dedicated to the ordinary people and not just the rich needs brought in, until that changes the international community will always block any attempts to create power stations within the Philippines because of the incompetence and the corruption that takes place it just makes the notion of actually having and operating a live nuclear power plant a complete bomb scare.

  38. If one day the BNPP becomes operational, I wonder how much it will cost for the updates of the facilities. It is clear that the shortsightedness of the Conjuangco-Aquino admin is more costly than establishment of BNPP.

    1. It’s risky at this point because it’s been neglected for 30+ years. The government should decide once and for all what to do with it because they are still spending billions for its upkeep for tourism purposes which actually fall short to support its preservation. First thing that they should do is to get experts to have it assessed and the result on that assessment should stir them as to what to do with it afterwards.

  39. If this project was continued years ago we have tremendously advanced in titanic proportion. I cursed the Administration who decided to stop it for a very stupid reason. We can even have our space program and build our own space satellite, we will be a very dependent country to our own alone not depending too much from other countries. We will advanced in Science, Technology and Advance Industrialization. Really Philippines have fallen, And I cannot see a future that the Philippines will rise again without the world belittling us.

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