Should Taiwan Utilize Nuclear Energy?

Abstract

Regardless of the increase in demand for electricity, Taiwan faces issues in maintaining a stable and environment-friendly way to produce and supply energy. In hopes of decreasing carbon emissions, Taiwan endeavors to substitute electricity generated by fossil fuel power plants with renewable energy. However, the development of renewable energy is limited in Taiwan due to topographical factors. Additionally, research has found that creating excessive amounts of renewable energy infrastructure can damage natural habitats. Despite nuclear energy being a viable solution to Taiwan's energy dilemma, the Taiwanese government has formulated plans to prohibit the operation of nuclear power plants by 2025, regarding concerns of potential hazards and detrimental effects of radiation in the event of nuclear plant accidents.

Moreover, Taiwan also lacks reserved energy that is utilized when electricity interruptions occur. Failure to produce and preserve excessive energy can increase the length of electricity interruptions, which may lead to economic damage to factories that require electricity to operate. 

Implementing Smart Grid in Taiwan can maintain stable electricity even when electricity interruptions occur. Investing in small modular reactors (SMR) is also a viable solution to replace fossil fuel power plants due to their low initial investments, greater scalability, and more flexible terrain condition requirements compared to traditional nuclear reactors. This study focuses on the analysis of Taiwan’s electricity issue and searches for possible solutions to decrease carbon emissions and increase the stable supply of electricity.