Taipower and government say fuel cannot be loaded without operating license
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipower Chair Tseng Wen-sheng (曾文生) said Tuesday the company does not have the authority to unilaterally decide on the transport or loading of nuclear fuel rods.
A UDN report suggested on Sunday that Taipower may negotiate the purchase of new fuel rods while experts from Westinghouse Electric Corp. visit the Maanshan Nuclear Power Plant for a planned safety inspection. A DPP insider said that, given the timelines for inspection and procurement, both could conclude by 2027, potentially allowing progress on reopening the plant before the 2028 presidential election.
An industry insider said the original fuel rod contract had already considered a possible extension of the plant’s service life. The insider added that if the government decides to reopen the plant, Taipower would not necessarily wait until obtaining an operating license before purchasing fuel rods.
Responding to the report, Tseng said work at the plant is proceeding as planned, but safety inspection results must be approved by regulators, per NOWNews. He added that fuel procurement requires discussions with Westinghouse, while transporting and loading nuclear fuel requires regulatory approval.
The economics ministry said Sunday that Taipower cannot load nuclear fuel into reactors without first obtaining an operating license, per RTI. It added that decisions on reopening the plant, including any fuel purchases, will be made by professionals and should not be politicized.
Separately, TPP lawmaker Hung Yu-hsiang (洪毓祥) questioned Auditor-General Chen Jui-min (陳瑞敏) about government spending on transporting fuel from the Lungmen Nuclear Power Plant. Hung said Taipower lost about NT$8 billion (US$253 million) shipping the fuel to the US to seek buyers and could spend more if it purchases new fuel rods for Maanshan.
Chen said placing the Lungmen plant under maintenance management was a political decision, per Liberty Times. He added the fuel rods were worth about NT$8 billion, with storage in the US costing an additional NT$400 million.
Chen said the expenses stem from policy decisions and should be addressed by Taipower. He also recommended that Taipower explain why it would need to purchase new fuel rods while fuel from the Lungmen plant remains in storage in the US.
Source: Taiwan News