Taiwan Weighs Nuclear Return: Which Plant Can Restart First?

Taiwan's Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) has signaled a shift in the government's long-held position on nuclear power, telling lawmakers that energy mix ratios — including shares for renewables and coal — would be reassessed once nuclear units clear independent safety inspections and are cleared to resume operations.

The remarks came amid renewed debate over Taiwan's heavy reliance on natural gas, following tensions between the United States and Iran that disrupted international energy supply chains and prompted foreign media to flag potential national security risks for the island.

Storm Media reviews the current status of all four nuclear power plants and their eight reactor units, assessing which are realistically positioned for restart.

Nuclear power's origins in Taiwan: born out of an energy crisis

Taiwan's first nuclear power plant — Chinshan — was approved for construction in 1970 and broke ground at the end of 1971.
（Related： Opinion | Taiwan's Energy Vulnerability Laid Bare by Middle East Conflict ｜ Latest ）

Work was already underway when the first global oil crisis struck in October 1973, driving crude oil prices from under $3 per barrel to more than $13 and sending thermal power generation costs sharply higher.

The crisis exposed the fragility of Taiwan's energy supply and prompted the government to include nuclear power in its landmark Ten Major Construction Projects that same year, with Chinshan designated a priority. The second and third nuclear plants were subsequently incorporated into the Twelve Major Construction Projects as extensions of the nuclear program.

Chinshan Plant: decommissioning advanced, restart prospects dim

As Taiwan's oldest nuclear facility, Chinshan Plant's Unit 1 reached the end of its operating license in December 2018 and entered the decommissioning phase.

The process stalled for years, however, because New Taipei City refused to issue a water and soil conservation permit for an outdoor dry storage facility for spent fuel rods, leaving them trapped inside the reactor.

After New Taipei City gradually approved the necessary permits, Taiwan's Nuclear Safety Commission (NSC) issued an operating license for the plant's spent fuel dry storage facility in May 2025. Spent fuel rods have since been fully removed from the nuclear island zone, and auxiliary equipment — including backup diesel generators and transformers — has been dismantled.

With those generators already removed to make way for indoor dry storage construction, any future restart would require new emergency generators to be installed. Given that Chinshan houses Taiwan's oldest and most expensive-to-replace equipment, its prospects for restart are considered the lowest of any nuclear plant in Taiwan.

Kuosheng Plant: safety checks must wait for spent fuel removal

At Kuosheng Plant (the second nuclear power plant), construction of a dry storage facility has only recently begun. Spent fuel rods remain inside the reactor and cannot be removed because the spent fuel pool is full.

Taipower estimates it will take two to three years to complete the dry storage facility, obtain the necessary license, remove the spent fuel, and then conduct the required safety inspections and self-assessments.

Kuosheng carries particular strategic importance as a key source of power stability for northern Taiwan and a major electricity supplier to eastern Taipei, and expectations for its restart are accordingly high.

Sources indicate Taipower is already replacing and overhauling grid equipment so that, if Kuosheng is eventually cleared for restart, the recovery timeline can be shortened.
（Related： Opinion | Taiwan's Energy Vulnerability Laid Bare by Middle East Conflict ｜ Latest ）

Maanshan Plant: strongest restart candidate, Westinghouse deal already signed

Maanshan Plant (the third nuclear power plant) is widely seen as the most viable candidate for restart. According to Taipower, preliminary restart planning has been completed, with a formal submission to the NSC expected before the end of March.

On January 15, Taipower signed a memorandum of understanding with Westinghouse Electric Company — the original designer of the plant — to provide technical assistance and support for the NSC review process. A formal procurement contract was finalized and took effect on February 13, with Westinghouse engineers set to begin on-site work at the plant.

Maanshan's operating license only expired in 2025, and ahead of that milestone Taipower had already been maintaining the facility to annual overhaul standards in anticipation of a possible restart.

This contrasts sharply with Chinshan and Kuosheng, both of which entered full decommissioning. Maanshan consequently remains in the best overall operational condition of any nuclear facility in Taiwan.

Sources say Taipower is internally planning another maintenance overhaul this year to bring the units back to peak condition. Pending NSC approval and license issuance, Maanshan is positioned to be the fastest nuclear facility to return to operation.

Lungmen Plant: past its peak, power generation still years away

Lungmen Plant (the fourth nuclear power plant) was mothballed by the Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) administration in 2014. When the mothballing period expired in 2019, the plant transitioned to an asset maintenance phase.

Only the nuclear island units have been kept intact; unlike during the mothballing period, no inert gas has been pumped in to preserve the equipment. Generators, transformers, and other non-nuclear equipment have been removed and redistributed to other power plants as part of an asset optimization effort.

Critically, all of Lungmen's fuel rods have been shipped back to the United States for disassembly, meaning an entirely new fuel purchase would be required before the plant could generate any electricity.

Taipower has stated publicly that decisions on restarting existing nuclear plants and decisions on activating Lungmen will be handled separately — restarting nuclear power does not automatically mean Lungmen will be brought online. Whether Lungmen ever operates remains a question for a future administration to decide.

（Related： Opinion | Taiwan's Energy Vulnerability Laid Bare by Middle East Conflict ｜ Latest ）

​