Senior Research Fellow Denise Cheong and Research Associate Nivedita S participated in an online panel discussion on ‘Practices, Policies, and Plans in Civilian Nuclear Energy in ASEAN’ organised by the ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) on 8 October 2020. The discussion focussed on two ‘frontrunner’ countries, namely the Philippines and Indonesia. The Philippines is adopting a ‘four cornerstone approach’ towards its nuclear infrastructure development, with national policy, legislative framework, alignment with international standards and public awareness and acceptability being the cornerstones. Both the Philippines and Indonesia are interested in small modular reactor (SMR) technology with Indonesia making strides in the development of its own SMR technology. While Indonesia has made significant progress in implementing its plans, socio-political challenges remain. Discussions also addressed the challenge of financing nuclear power projects and the need to de-risk such projects to make them more viable and profitable.

Panellists included Mike Sinocruz, Chief, Planning Division, Energy Policy and Planning Bureau, Department of Energy (DoE) the Philippines; Professor Djarot Wisnubroto, Badan Tenaga Nuklir Nasional (BATAN); and Saied Dardour, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The session was moderated by Dr Nuki Agya Utama, Executive Director, ACE.