A group said that the Philippines may lose investors to Bangladesh if they do not have a clear direction with regards to their nuclear energy policy.

Likewise, the nuclear energy advocate Alpas Pilipinas said that the government should expedite plans that would switch on the country’s first nuclear power plant. 

Lead convenor Gayle Certeza narrated that there are many businesses, in particular with the manufacturing sector, that cannot bear the high cost of electricity in the country.

She said that under an alternative source of power for example nuclear, a reliable and clean source of energy, it can be done to make the rates cheaper.

“Our businesses are very much affected. Many of our investors may pull out from the Philippines because of the high cost of electricity here. So, when Bangladesh operates its nuclear power plants, many of our factories may go to them because of cheaper power cost,” Certeza said.

For his part, the Chairperson of House of Representatives Special Committee on Nuclear Energy, Rep. Mark Cojuangco, had declared that Bangladesh will now light the green button for their 1,200-megawatt (MW) nuclear power plant by the year end.

“In a span of two years, Bangladesh will have nuclear power plants four times the capacity of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP),” he said.