On Tuesday, the Philippines and the United States agreed to train Filipinos in building and operating nuclear power plants to enhance the country’s electricity supply.
This accord comes after a nuclear cooperation pact signed in November that opened the door for US funding in the Philippines’ atomic energy industry. The Philippine Department of Energy and the Philippine-American Educational Foundation must offer scholarships and exchange programmes focused on renewable energy and civil nuclear power, according to the new agreement.
US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink said, “This will assist the Philippines in producing the trained labour force required to construct a clean energy infrastructure, including cutting-edge nuclear power plants.”
Nuclear power has always been a particular interest of President Ferdinand Marcos, who even had thoughts of bringing back a $2.2 billion facility from his father’s time. The agreement reached in November in San Francisco during an Asia-Pacific summit guarantees protections against transferring nuclear material for use in weapons.
Under the US Atomic Energy Act, agreements known as “123 agreements” are essential for US nuclear corporations to invest without breaking non-proliferation rules. A civil nuclear industry working group for Southeast Asia will also be formed in Manila to facilitate the connection between US corporations and Philippine partners.
