Malaysia, ASEAN Mulling Nuclear As New Energy Source

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 7 (Bernama)-- Several ASEAN countries, including Malaysia, have agreed in principle to consider nuclear energy as one of the future energy sources.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said neighbouring countries mulling the nuclear option in their energy mix are Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar and Thailand.

“As part of efforts to support the country’s economic growth and meet the energy demands of industries, especially the digital economy sectors such as artificial intelligence and energy-intensive data centres, we must ensure a reliable power supply, so the government is also considering nuclear energy as one of the options.

“During the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Energy Ministerial Meeting in South Korea recently, APEC economies agreed that nuclear energy is among the options to ensure clean energy supply,” he said.

As for safety, Fadillah noted that the second to third generation nuclear power plants have advanced significantly in terms of technology, safety, environmental impact and global acceptance.

He said this in his speech at the Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation (PETRA) Media Night here this evening.

Fadillah, who is also the Minister of Energy Transition and Water Transformation, highlighted that MyPower, an agency under PETRA, has been tasked with conducting a study on nuclear energy use, though its adoption is expected to take place within the next 10 to 15 years.

At the same time, he said that Malaysia should also look into smart grid systems, as solar and other renewable energy sources remain unstable.

“As such, the government is currently looking into ways to enhance the grid system, moving towards a smart grid that will be more efficient in terms of storage of energy, usage and monitoring,” he said.

-- BERNAMA