Taiwan's Nuclear Safety Commission has completed its technical review of the plan to restart the Maanshan nuclear power plant and is working through the final administrative approval. Once the plan is approved, Taiwan Power Co. (Taipower) can inspect the plant's equipment and restore it to operable condition, the commission said on September 2, and Taipower expects to do so gradually between this year and next. The Kuomintang (KMT) responded on September 3 by demanding that President 
Lai Ching-te formally apologise for what it called a mistaken past nuclear-free policy and the energy cost Taiwan paid for it, CNA reported.
What did the KMT say? Party spokesman Chen Yi-hsin said in a press release that the restart had taken a key step, but that "before Maanshan has even restarted, Lai's nuclear-free myth has already gone bankrupt." As premier, Chen said, Lai had vowed that a nuclear-free homeland by 2025 would come naturally and that power shortages would not hold back Taiwan's development. Chen asked why the government was rushing to restart the plant after little more than a year offline, calling it "not a successful energy transition, but a crash of the DPP's decades-long nuclear-free policy." He said the restart proved the KMT's pragmatic energy stance right, citing party chair 
Cheng Li-wun: "Without electricity there is no competitiveness, without power there is no computing power, and no high-tech or AI industry."
How did the ruling party respond? The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said KMT figures including former chairman Eric Chu and New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih once held up "anti-nuclear, no fear" campaign material, and asked whether Chen would first demand apologies from them. It said it holds to three principles: assured nuclear safety, a solution for nuclear waste and social consensus. DPP caucus whip Chuang Jui-hsiung said the party's policy had not flip-flopped, and that after more than 20 years of development, with international AI and semiconductor companies investing, the government is responsible for a stable power supply. Policy can be reviewed, he said, but saying Lai is restarting nuclear power "is going too fast."
What role does the referendum play? Whether to restart nuclear power will be decided again by voters in a referendum held alongside the election, not by any party, Chuang said, adding that it includes an item on abolishing the nuclear-free homeland. The previous Maanshan referendum failed to reach its threshold, he said, and assuming a passing vote means a restart is also "jumping too fast."
Figures referenced: Lai Ching-te, Cheng Li-wun. — JudgeMarket.
