Antique among potential sites for nuclear power plants in PH

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

The province of Antique has been identified as one of the potential sites for the construction of nuclear power plants in the country, as the government ramps up efforts to diversify its energy mix and explore cleaner power sources.

A report from ABS-CBN News reported that Antique, along with Labrador in Pangasinan, Jose Panganiban in Camarines Norte, Masbate, and two unspecified areas in Palawan, have been cleared by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) as possible sites for the country’s future nuclear energy projects.

Energy Secretary Sharon Garin assured that no nuclear plant will be built in communities that oppose it.

“We should not build a community that does not want nuclear power because that is their community. If they don’t want it there, we cannot force them to accept,” she told reporters during the Philippine International Nuclear Supply Chain Forum 2025.

PHIVOLCS Director Teresito Bacolcol emphasized the need to ensure that nuclear plant sites are structurally safe and not exposed to geohazards.

“We really have to make sure that we will build nuclear power plants or small modular reactors in safe places. Any damage could cause radioactive leaks, which are very dangerous,” he said.

Antique lies close to several major geologic structures.

The West Panay Fault is an active fault line running through Panay Island and passing through parts of the province.

In 1948, the town of Anini-y in southern Antique was the epicenter of the devastating Lady Caycay earthquake, one of the strongest in Philippine history with an estimated magnitude of 7.8.

Antique’s long coastline faces the Sulu Sea and is positioned near the Negros Trench, a major subduction zone to the west of Panay Island, and the Tablas Lineament, a tectonic boundary.

In 2019, Philippine Nuclear Research Institute Director Carlo Arcilla identified Semirara Island in Caluya, Antique—home to the country’s largest coal mine operated by Semirara Mining and Power Corporation (SMPC) under DMCI Holdings Inc.—as a possible site for a nuclear facility.

ABS-CBN News also quoted Arcilla as saying that the Consunji family, which runs SMPC, can operate a nuclear facility.

“Island sya. Walang magrereklamo. Kung magka-accident man maliit lang ang effect. Tapos isolated,” he said.

Arcilla’s proposal to explore nuclear power in Antique has drawn opposition from environmental advocates and the local Catholic Church, who cite risks associated with the province’s geologic hazards and ecological sensitivity.

Garin explained that although she aims for the first operational nuclear power plant to come “soon,” its timing depends on many factors, especially investors’ decisions.

She emphasized that what she wants to achieve within the current president’s term is to have license applications submitted.

Once investors apply for a license, these applications may be deemed valid for construction to begin.

Regulators can then assess the investors’ capacity and review details like the source of nuclear reactors.

Earlier this September, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed into law the Philippine National Nuclear Energy Safety Act.

This landmark legislation creates the Philippine Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (PhilATOM), an independent, quasi-judicial regulatory body with exclusive jurisdiction over all nuclear- and radiation-related activities in the country.

PhilATOM is tasked with overseeing the safe and peaceful use of nuclear energy and issuing licenses for nuclear-related activities, including plant construction and operation.

The regulatory body will also ensure compliance with international standards under the International Atomic Energy Agency and regulate nuclear materials and safeguards to prevent misuse or proliferation.

The government envisions commercial deployment of nuclear power to begin with a 1,200 MW plant around 2032, expanding capacity up to 4,800 MW by 2050 as part of the country’s Clean Energy Scenario under the Philippine Energy Plan 2023–2050.