Taiwan reverses policy of phasing out nuclear power by 2025

• 5 years ago (2018-11-28)
• David Flin

Asia 848 Nuclear 640

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A referendum in Taiwan resulted in voters opposing the Government policy of phasing out nuclear power by 2025. As a result, the Government has ended its plan to do this.

The plan to phase-out nuclear power resulted from public concern following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, and formed part of the Government’s energy reforms. These reforms also included reducing coal use and increasing the use of wind and solar power.

The referendum resulted in 59.5 per cent of voters wanting to overturn the target, although this was opposed by some business groups concerned about energy security. While the nuclear phase-out target of 2025 has been dropped, Government policy remains to eventually eliminate nuclear power. Nuclear power has fallen to below a 10 per cent share of power generation in Taiwan, down from around 20 per cent in 2014.

In addition to phasing out nuclear power, the ruling Democratic Progressive party has said that it intends to increase the share of renewables from 6 per cent to 20 per cent over the next seven years. This will be through the construction of offshore wind farms and solar installations.