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The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) is a nuclear power plant on the Bataan Peninsula, 100 kilometers (62 mi) west of Manila, Philippines. Completed but never fueled, it is located on a 3.57 km2 (1.38 sq mi) government reservation at Napot Point in Morong, Bataan. It was the Philippines' only attempt at building a nuclear power plant. It was mothballed due to safety concerns in the wake of the Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine in 1986 and issues regarding corruption. The Letter of Instruction No. 957, s. 1979 was signed by the late President Ferdinand Marcos and was published on November 13, 1979, in which it states that the continuation of the construction was not possible due to potential hazards to the health and safety of the public; however, the Marcos administration eventually supported the project. Background The Philippine nuclear program started in 1958 with the creation of the Philippine Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) under Republic Act 2067. Under a regime of martial law, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos in July 1973 announced the decision to build a nuclear power plant. A presidential committee was set up to secure funding for two 620 megawatt nuclear reactors for the energy needs of Luzon. Marcos reasoned that this was in response to the 1973 oil crisis, as the Middle East oil embargo had put a heavy strain on the Philippine economy. Controversy Two proposals were submitted by General Electric and Westinghouse Electric. General Electric submitted a proposal containing detailed specifications of the nuclear plant and estimated it to cost US$700 million. On the other hand, Westinghouse submitted a lower cost estimate of US$500 million, but the proposal did not contain any detail or specification. The presidential committee tasked to oversee the project preferred General Electric's proposal, but this was overruled by Marcos in June 1974, who signed a letter of intent awarding the project to Westinghouse, despite the absence of any specifications on their proposal. Similarly, Marcos disregarded the advice of the National Power Corporation, the government-owned and controlled corporation responsible for electricity in the country. The project was plagued with problems throughout construction, including location, welding, cabling, pipes and valves, permits, and kickbacks, as well as setbacks such as the decline of Marcos's influence and the incident at the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor. By March 1975, Westinghouse's cost estimate ballooned to US$1.2 billion without much explanation. The final cost was $2.2 billion for a single reactor producing half the power of the original proposal. Many problems identified in earlier stages remained throughout construction, as reported by inspectors though denied by Westinghouse. In 1976, the Philippine economy only had a GDP of US$17 billion and a government budget of US$1.5 billion. As such, the burden to the economy for one single project was deemed too heavy. The power plant would be responsible to 10% of the country's external debt. The Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) would later order Marcos crony Herminio Disini to return US$50.6 million in commissions he earned from the deal. Marcos on the other hand received US$80 million in kickback from the project. The Office of the Solicitor General would also file that Marcos return PHP22.2 billion to the government for his conspiracy with Disini to defraud the government. In 2021, the Supreme Court of the Philippines ordered Disini, through his estate, to pay back the government over PHP1 billion in damages, affirming a 2012 Sandiganbayan decision. The Supreme Court of the Philippines First Division in the August 29, 2023 12-page resolution reduced from P1 billion to P100 million the temperate damages that Herminio T. Disini estate must pay for brokering the 1974 deal behind the now mothballed $2.3-billion Bataan Nuclear Power Plant. “Wherefore, this Court resolves to deny with finality the Republic of the Philippines' Oct. 28, 2021 Motion for Reconsideration. Petitioner Herminio T. Disini's Comment (Re: Motion for Reconsideration) with Omnibus Motion as well as his Supplement to the Comment with Omnibus Motion are noted and partially granted. The award of temperate damages is reduced to P100,000,000. All other aspects of the assailed Decision stand. No further pleadings or motions shall be entertained in this case. Let the entry of judgment be issued immediately", it ruled. Construction Construction on the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant began in 1976. Following the 1979 Three Mile Island accident in the United States, construction on the BNPP was stopped, and a subsequent safety inquiry into the plant revealed over 4,000 defects. Among the issues raised was that it was built near a major geological fault line and close to the then dormant Mount Pinatubo. By 1984, when the BNPP was nearly complete, its cost had reached US$2.3 billion. Equipped with a Westinghouse light water reactor, it was designed to produce 621 megawatts of electricity. President Ferdinand Marcos was overthrown by the People Power Revolution in February 1986. Days after the April 1986 Chernobyl disaster in what was then the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, the succeeding administration of President Corazon Aquino decided not to operate the plant. Among other considerations taken were the strong opposition from Bataan residents and Philippine citizens as well as concern over the integrity of the construction. The Philippines experienced 8- to 12-hour rolling blackouts and power rationing from 1989 to 1993. The government sued Westinghouse for alleged overpricing and bribery but was ultimately rejected by a United States court. Debt repayment on the plant became the country's biggest single obligation. While successive governments have looked at several proposals to convert the plant into an oil, coal, or gas-fired power station, these options have all been deemed less economically attractive in the long term than simply constructing new power stations. Opposition The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant was a focal point for anti-nuclear protests in the late 1970s and 1980s. The project was criticized for being a potential threat to public health, especially since the plant was located in an earthquake zone connected to Mount Natib, a caldera volcano similar to Mount Pinatubo. According to the US Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center, several earthquakes have occurred on Mount Natib from 1951 to 2016. Following proposals submitted in 2017 by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. Ltd. and Russia's Rosatom to rehabilitate the plant, opposition to the nuclear plant also raised concerns related to safety and health issues, reliance on imported uranium, high waste, and the steep cost of decommissioning. Aftermath 2000s Despite never being commissioned, the plant has remained intact, including the nuclear reactor, and has continued to be maintained. The Philippine gover.... Discover the Brian Dumaine popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Brian Dumaine books.