nuclear-news

It is Time to Expose the Great British Nuclear Fantasy Once and for All

Thomas, Stephen and Blowers, Andrew, It is Time to Expose the Great British Nuclear Fantasy Once and for All (September 30, 2024). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4971427 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4971427

Abstract

In April 2022, the then UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, set a target of 24GW of new nuclear capacity to be completed in Great Britain by 2050. At the heart of the proposal was the creation of a new government owned entity, Great British Nuclear (GBN), with a mission of ‘helping projects through every stage of the development process and developing a resilient pipeline of new builds’ designed to ensure energy security and to meet the UK’s commitment to achieving net zero.

Despite the sound and fury, the GBN project is bound to fail. Its contribution to achieving net zero by 2050 will be nugatory. No amount of political commitment can overcome the lack of investors, the absence of credible builders and operators or available technologies let alone secure regulatory assessment and approval

Moreover, in an era of climate change there will be few potentially suitable sites to host new nuclear power stations for indefinite, indeed unknowable, operating, decommissioning and waste management lifetimes. And there are the anxieties and fears that nuclear foments, the danger of accidents and proliferation and the environmental and public health issues arising from the legacy of radioactive waste scattered on sites around the country.

October 8, 2024 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | spinbuster, UK