News Briefs: Gov opposes nuke

BALANGA CITY—Reopening the mothballed Bataan nuclear power plant (BNPP) means spending billions of pesos and it would take 15 years “before we can finally operate the plant,” Bataan Gov. Albert Garcia said here on Wednesday. The Department of Energy has expressed interest in activating the nuclear facility built during the administration of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos in Morong town in Bataan province. But Garcia said he preferred converting the facility into a liquefied natural gas plant, which, he said, is 50 percent cleaner than coal. —GREG REFRACCION

Mayor wins another round

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—Mayor Oscar Moreno won another round in a legal battle brought to his doorstep by allies of former mayor Vicente Emano, who are trying to unseat Moreno following Emano’s defeat in the May elections. The Commission on Elections (Comelec) dismissed a disqualification case filed against Moreno over a 2015 Ombudsman decision sacking and perpetually disqualifying Moreno from public office. —JIGGER JERUSALEM

Power plant in Tawi-Tawi

COTABATO CITY—The board of investments of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) has approved the construction of an 8-megawatt diesel-fired power plant for Tawi-Tawi province, which would cost P831 million. Lawyer Ishak Mastura, chair of the Regional Board of Investments of ARMM, said the plant would be built in Bongao town by the company Kaltimex Rural Energy Corp. The project, said Mastura, is a “milestone” in ARMM. —ALLAN NAWAL