President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s 2026 State of the Nation Address once again placed nuclear power on the national agenda. Predictably, public discussion returned to a familiar question: Should the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) finally be revived?
That is an understandable question, but it is no longer the right one.
The more important question is this: How should the Philippines build the energy system needed for its future economy?
For decades, Philippine energy planning focused on supporting population growth and conventional industrialization. Today, the country faces a different challenge. It wants to attract investments in artificial intelligence, semiconductor manufacturing, cloud computing, advanced electronics, and hyperscale data centers, all industries that require enormous amounts of reliable electricity.
The proposed Pax Silica technology hub in New Clark City illustrates the scale of that challenge. Government officials have said the project could eventually require around 3 gigawatts of generating capacity, equivalent to several large power plants. Whether Pax Silica ultimately reaches that scale or not, it points to a broader reality: the Philippines must prepare for an economy whose electricity needs will be far greater than today’s.
