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COP28: Is a tripling of nuclear energy workable?

DW Nik Martin, 7 Dec 23

Twenty countries agreed at the COP28 climate summit to triple their nuclear energy capacity by 2050 to reduce carbon emissions. How feasible is the target given the complexities and cost of building new nuclear plants?

The nuclear industry is delighted; environmentalists are divided. Twenty countries signed a pledge last weekend at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai to triple their nuclear energy capacity by 2050.

The decision, by mostly European and North American countries, will mean that nuclear energy could go from meeting 10% of the world’s current electricity needs to almost a third within 25 years…………..

The signature nations said they believe the world will not get to Net Zero without building more nuclear power stations, while the industry body World Nuclear Association hailed the move as “very significant.

Dozens of new power plants

Under the pledge, countries will adopt several measures, including extending the life of existing nuclear reactors up to 80 years. Between them, they’ll also build both new large-scale reactors and advanced small modular reactors (SMR) as touted by TerraPower, the nuclear firm backed by Microsoft founder Bill Gates and British jet engine firm Rolls Royce.

But the tripling of nuclear capacity is no easy feat. It will require governments to speed up approvals for new nuclear plants and huge financial commitments. Existing nuclear reactors have often faced long construction delays and were delivered way over budget. So naturally, many nuclear watchers are somewhat skeptical about whether the plan is workable.

“It’s very challenging, but not impossible,” Jim Smith, a professor of environmental science at the UK’s University of Portsmouth, told DW. “The French did it from the late 1960s to 1980 or so, but it’s very difficult given how long modern reactors seem to take to get online.”

Smith said the scaling up of nuclear is still more likely than nuclear fusion or green hydrogen over the next two decades as the two other technologies have several hurdles to overcome………………………………………………………

The European Union’s labeling last year of nuclear as a green and clean energy was a major boon for the sector’s renewal, despite the lack of a permanent site for the safe disposal of radioactive waste. Indeed, European countries make up 13 of the 20 signatories to the COP28 nuclear pledge, including France, Britain, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Poland, Hungary and Sweden.

Last year, France alone said it planned to build six new nuclear reactors and is considering building a further eight………………………

Will Germany U-turn on nuclear?

Even if some environmentalists can be persuaded about nuclear’s utility, the German government could be more tricky to convince. Earlier this year, Germany switched off its three remaining nuclear power plants as part of a decade-long commitment to denuclearize its electricity supply……….

Although the German government did delay the decommissioning of the last nuclear plants due to last year’s energy crisis, ministers say they remain committed to life without nuclear energy.

Does nuclear energy make financial sense?

(The article makes no attempt to really answer that question)

 https://www.dw.com/en/cop28-is-a-tripling-of-nuclear-energy-workable/a-67655770

December 9, 2023 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Uncategorized