Power utility giant Manila Electric Company (Meralco) is ramping up its investment on enhancing the  professional skills of prospective workers in the resuscitated nuclear power industry of the Philippines through the new scholarship deals it inked with Canadian and American universities.

The new memoranda of understanding (MOU) for nuclear scholarship program were firmed up with Ontario Tech University in Canada and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) in the United States.

Meralco reaffirmed that “the partnerships with the foreign universities aim to ensure provision of adequate knowledge on managing a nuclear power plant, including best practices in the study of nuclear energy.”

Fundamentally, Meralco is ensuring that it will have industry-ready professionals who will not just have theoretical knowledge and innovative mindset on nuclear engineering, but will similarly gain practical experience on nuclear power operations via the follow-through internship activities that the utility firm will also be pursuing for its scholars.

A key condition for the deployed nuclear scholars will be for them to return to the Philippines – by 2028 for the initial batch; and “they will be reintegrated into Meralco and be assigned to take on a role in its nuclear power generation unit.”

As cast in the Philippine Energy Plan (PEP), the country’s nuclear renaissance pathway is aimed for 2032 timeframe with initial installation of 1,200 megawatts.

On the core, the agreement that Meralco had cemented with partner-universities will enable “co-development and implementation of nuclear energy-related programs and conduct of joint research projects that will be beneficial to the adoption of the alternative power source in the country.”

According to Meralco Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Ronnie L. Aperocho, the educational tie-up will aid the utility firm “in having greater understanding of nuclear technologies, ensuring that challenges are addressed, and plans are well aligned with government policies prior to deployment.”

He added “our commitment to explore the adoption of nuclear energy in the country is reinforced by these milestone collaborations with reputable international institutions.”

The company’s deployment of nuclear scholars under the charge of the Meralco Power Academy (MPA) is underpinned by its self-designed Filipino Scholars and Interns on Nuclear Engineering (FISSION) program.

The first batch of scholars were sent to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the US; and Harbin Engineering University in China.

Aperocho highlighted that “through FISSION, we hope to cultivate the next generation of strong innovators in the field of nuclear energy, empowering and further enhancing the competencies of energy professionals to advance sustainable energy solutions for the country.”

Apart from signing the new partnership deals with the North American universities on scholarships, Meralco executives had likewise visited China and signed parallel MOUs with Harbin Engineering University (HEU) and Tsinghua University.

Meralco qualified that the partner-universities had been shortlisted based on their offer of “international graduate program on nuclear based on world-ranking, track record, access to nuclear energy laboratories, and ongoing research on small and micro modular reactors.”