Bataan is a 621 MWe Westinghouse PWR completed in 1984 but never fuelled or operated; President Corazon Aquino mothballed it in 1986. KHNP has been studying its rehabilitation for the Philippine Department of Energy since January 2025, but the host town of Morong declared itself a non-nuclear zone in June 2026 and the new regulator PhilATOM is not yet operating.
Background: Palisades fuel loading: Holtec restart timeline and what comes next · NRC reactor licensing process, explained
Current state
| Status | Proposed |
| Country | Philippines |
| Location | Napot Point, Morong, Bataan |
| Plant | Bataan |
| Unit | 1 |
| Operator | National Power Corporation (Napocor), Philippine government |
| Reactor type | PWR |
| Net capacity (MWe) | 621 |
| Restart type | Never-operated revival |
| Shut down | 1986 |
| Years offline | 40.3 |
| Regulator | Unlicensed; any rehabilitation or operation needs approval of PhilATOM, created by RA 12305 (Sept 2025) but not yet operational |
| Local consent | Opposed locally: Morong municipal council approved a non-nuclear-zone ordinance in June 2026 |
| Cost estimate | USD 2.3bn |
Notes
Never operated: years offline counts from the 1986 mothballing (year precision, mid-year assumed). cost estimate is DOE Undersecretary Sharon Garin's Nov 2022 figure of US$2.3bn to refurbish and start up (WNA); a 2008 IAEA mission estimated $800m-$1bn. Original construction cost $1.9bn (WNA). The Philippines targets first nuclear power by 2032, possibly via Bataan or SMRs.
Timeline
- 1976-07 — Construction of the single 621 MWe Westinghouse unit began. (source)
- 1984 — The plant was completed but was never loaded with fuel. (source)
- 1986 — After the Chernobyl accident, President Corazon Aquino decided to mothball the plant. (source)
- 2024-10-07 — The Philippine DOE and KHNP signed an MoU for a two-phase feasibility study on rehabilitating the plant, at KHNP's cost. (source)
- 2025-01 — KHNP's feasibility study began, starting with a plant condition assessment. (source)
- 2025-09 — President Marcos signed RA 12305 creating the independent regulator PhilATOM. (source)
- 2026-06 — Morong's municipal council declared the municipality a non-nuclear zone. (source)
The timeline is append-only: corrections are added as new entries. Stated targets appear in the current-state table, never as milestones.
Sources
- Nuclear Power in the Philippines — World Nuclear Association, checked 2026-10-11
- Korea to assess rehabilitation of Philippine plant — World Nuclear News, checked 2026-10-11
- Bataan nuclear plant's future hinges on new independent regulator — Asian Journal, checked 2026-10-11