Nuclear Power In Taiwan
Taiwan has 4884 MWe of nuclear power capacity by means of 3 active plants and 6 reactors, which makes up around 8.1% of its national energy consumption. The technology chosen for the reactors has been General Electric BWR technology for 2 plants and Westinghouse PWR technology for the Maanshan Nuclear Power Plant. The Lungmen Nuclear Power Plant is under construction, but has encountered public opposition and a host of delays.
Active seismic faults run across the island, and some environmentalists argue Taiwan is unsuited for nuclear plants. A 2011 Natural Resources Defense Council report that evaluated the seismic hazard to reactors worldwide, as determined by the Global Seismic Hazard Assessment Program data, placed all of Taiwan's reactors within the highest risk group of 12 reactors within very high seismic hazard areas, along with some of Japan's reactors.
The Lanyu nuclear waste storage facility was built on Orchid Island (Lanyu) in 1982. The plant receives nuclear waste from Taiwan's three nuclear power plants operated by state utility Taiwan Power Company (Taipower). About 100,000 barrels of nuclear waste from the nation’s three operational nuclear power plants have been stored at the Lanyu complex. In 2002 and 2012, there were major protests from local residents, calling on Taipower to remove the nuclear waste from the island.
Read more about Nuclear Power In Taiwan: Organization, Nuclear Waste Controversy, Post-Fukushima, List of Nuclear Power Stations in Taiwan, Anti-nuclear Movement
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