TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Legal amendments will do little to reverse the decommissioning of the next nuclear reactors set to go offline, a Cabinet spokesperson said on Thursday (July 11).

Speaking after a Cabinet meeting, spokesperson Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) said one of the Maanshan Nuclear Power Plant’s (核三廠) reactors will be shut down when its license expires on July 27. He said legal amendments put forward by the Kuomintang (KMT) that would make it easier to extend the life of Taiwan’s nuclear power plants will do little to change this, per CNA.

The KMT proposed several draft amendments to the Nuclear Reactor Facilities Regulation Act on Tuesday, but no consensus was reached during the meeting.

Chen said that even if these amendments are passed, it would not be possible to immediately restore the Maanshan Nuclear Power Plant (核三廠) reactor once it is switched off. The plant has two reactors, the second of which is slated to be decommissioned in May 2025.

KMT legislators argue that it is necessary to extend the life of Taiwan’s nuclear plants for energy security. Environmental groups and the Democratic Progressive Party oppose this, partially because there are limited options for disposing of nuclear waste.

Chen noted that the Jinshan (核一厰) and Kuosheng (核二厰) Nuclear Power Plants have already begun the process of decommissioning, but a place has yet to be found to dispose of their irradiated cores. The cores currently remain in the plants.

Taiwan’s small size and high population density make it difficult to find somewhere to store the waste, Chen said. “The government will continue to work hard on social communication, but will surely encounter difficulties,” he said.

Chen said the government will only discuss the continued use of nuclear energy in Taiwan when a solution to the nuclear waste problem has been found, safety has been ensured, and a social consensus has been reached.