nuclear-news

USA politicians pledge tax-payer funds, but nuclear industry still failing

Even supporters of the technology doubt that new projects will surface any time soon to replace those that have been all but abandoned…If the builders default, as happened on some nuclear construction projects in the 1980s, the taxpayer liabilities could run into the billions of dollars……

Despite Bipartisan Support, Nuclear Projects Falter, New York Times, By MATTHEW L. WALD, April 28, 2011,    WASHINGTON — In an effort to encourage nuclear power, Congress voted in 2005 to authorize $17.5 billion in loan guarantees for new reactors. Now, six years later, with the industry stalled by poor market conditions and the Fukushima disaster, nearly half of the fund remains unclaimed. And yet Congress, at the request of the Obama administration, is preparing to add $36 billion in nuclear loan guarantees to next year’s budget.

Even supporters of the technology doubt that new projects will surface any time soon to replace those that have been all but abandoned

….. Of the four nuclear reactor construction projects that the Energy Department identified in 2009 as the most deserving for the loans, two have lost major partners and seem unlikely to recover soon. In addition to low prices for natural gas, the demand for electricity is down, and the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that damaged the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant could bring new rules…..

The precise shape of new loan guarantees is uncertain, but when “scoring” the provisions for the purpose of calculating their expense, the White House says they cost nothing, and Congress assumes they cost 1 percent of the face value. But they are not without risk.

If the builders default, as happened on some nuclear construction projects in the 1980s, the taxpayer liabilities could run into the billions of dollars……

Henry D. Sokolski, executive director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center, said he opposed government assistance for new reactors. He said that because the loan guarantees covered only 80 percent of the construction cost, project sponsors had to come up with the remaining 20 percent.

“Since the most likely candidates to pony up the 20 percent bailed out,” he said, “it doesn’t augur well.”.. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/29/business/energy-environment/29utility.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

April 29, 2011 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA