MANILA -- President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. hailed on Thursday (US time) the advancements in the planned investment in nuclear energy in the country by an American nuclear firm, Ultra Safe Nuclear Corp. (USNC), hoping that the necessary legal requirements could be completed soon to commence the project.

During a meeting with USNC’s top executives led by its CEO Francesco Venmeri in Washington DC, Philippine officials reported to the President the ongoing legislative measures in Congress that will provide legal framework for Ultra Safe’s planned investment and operation in the Philippines.

Energy Secretary Rafael Lotilla told the President during the meeting that the House of Representatives already passed the regulatory framework, while the measure on limitation on liability is already on the second reading in the lower chamber.

With such development, the President said he is hopeful the bill gets passed in the Senate.

“You’re done already in the House. Okay. So, that the elements that need to be there, the provisions that need to be (included), we can do in the Senate and then there’s one of course, is the bicam down the road. So, that would be the process on the – from the government side,” President Marcos said during the meeting.

“And then presuming that they’re going to – we spoke about this before. We’re going to go ahead with the program, with project – will be the training of the people who actually… who will actually operate the plan,” the President also noted.

Thursday’s meeting is the follow-up from the initial meeting of the President with USNC at the Blair House in May last year with the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on the sidelines of APEC in San Francisco last November 2023, and subsequently, USNC’s participation in the recently held US Presidential Trade and Investment Mission last March 11, 2024.

USNC is a global leader and vertical integrator of nuclear technologies and services. Its major initiatives include the Micro Modular Reactor (MMR), Fully Ceramic Micro-encapsulated (FCM) nuclear fuel, and nuclear power and propulsion technologies for space exploration.

The MMR is a fourth generation nuclear energy system that delivers safe, zero-carbon, cost effective electricity and heat to utilities, industry, and remote communities. USNC is committed to bringing safe, commercially competitive, clean, and reliable nuclear energy to global power and industrial markets.

This will be USNC’s first investment in the country and the US company partnered with Meralco for an MMR study.

The Agreement was presented to the President in November 2023 on the sidelines of his participation in APEC in San Francisco. Under the agreement, USNC will conduct a pre-feasibility study that will run for four months to familiarize Meralco with MMR systems and how these can be effectively utilized in the Philippines.

Depending on the results of the pre-feasibility study, Meralco has the option to conduct a more detailed feasibility study with focus on the adoption and deployment of MMR energy systems. The Philippine and the United States governments signed the Agreement for Cooperation Concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy, or the 123 Agreement on November 16, 2023, in San Francisco, California. (PND)