nuclear-news

Pie in the sky? – The UK Government is considering to 75 Gigawatts of nuclear power by 2050

http://nextbigfuture.com/2013/12/the-uk-government-is-considering.html

22 December 2013

The current programme announced by ministers is to build 12 reactors to supply 16 gigawatts at five sites. The higher figure equates to more than 50 new large-scale modern reactors. The committee has been given the task of assessing the number of disposal facilities that might be required for the waste that will be produced by new nuclear power stations. It notes that the 16-gigawatt programme is only the “first tranche” and is “substantially below the 75 gigawatts upper limit being examined in [the Department of Energy and Climate Change]”.

The upper limit echoes a scenario outlined by the energy department in a 2011 report, outlining its vision for a low-carbon future. It suggested 75 gigawatts of nuclear power – enough to provide 86% of UK electricity – could be brought on line by 2050. “Nuclear energy is vital for our energy security and we want it to be part of the energy mix in the future, alongside renewables and clean coal and gas,” a department spokeswoman said. “It’s important to model potential scenarios to plan for our future energy needs, but we haven’t set any targets for the amount of new nuclear to be developed.”

December 22, 2013 - Posted by arclight2011part2 | Uncategorized