TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — If new technology can resolve the issues of nuclear safety and nuclear waste, then Taiwan should consider using nuclear energy, Vice President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) said Thursday (Oct. 19).

The government has set 2025 as the target date to turn Taiwan into a nuclear-free homeland. Lai said the phasing out of the country’s current three nuclear power plants would occur according to the law, but he could not rule out future nuclear energy plans if the technology became safe.

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chair and presidential candidate was speaking at a news conference emphasizing his support for the government’s plans for zero carbon emissions in 2050, per CNA. The closure of the fourth nuclear power plant in Gongliao, New Taipei City, had been approved by a referendum, so its reopening was not on the cards, he said.

Whether or not the life of the three other nuclear plants should be extended was not only a matter of safety and waste storage but also of local public opinion and the law, according to Lai. The presidential candidate said he approved of the government’s efforts to promote alternative forms of energy, including the use of wind farms and solar panels.