In his Talk to the People program, Duterte said the country’s energy sector continue to use coal that has devastating environmental consequences.
“I hope we can have a transition to nuclear, pag-usapan na,” Duterte said in public address aired over PTV and Radyo Pilipinas on Monday night.
Duterte said the next administration may want to just start the ball rolling and discuss it because the government has to educate so many people.
He said that if the country opts to adopt the use of nuclear power, it must also address the threat posed by communist insurgents to such sensitive facilities.
Duterte said aside from environmental concerns, the use of nuclear power must be discussed as he expressed dismay over the rising oil prices as a result of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
The conflict has influenced the stability of the global fuel prices, and it already had an impact on ordinary Filipinos and the economy.
Duterte said he is suggesting a shift to a more stable source of energy in order to have an efficient energy supply in the near future.
“You know oil is not infinite, may katapusan ‘yan. Someday it will dry up. It would be good for any government to prepare the possibility of making the transition earlier from oil ‘yung fossil fuel to nuclear kasi ang nuclear is forever,” he said.
Former president Ferdinand Marcos Sr., the father of the president-elect Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr. initiated the building of Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in order to address the energy crisis during his tenure. But it failed to operate due to safety issues following the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster in Ukraine.
Photo:Presidential Communications