Nuclear Power

New research from Iran shows that PV installations linked to battery storage may help prevent accidents and increase safety in nuclear power plants by acting as an emergency load. The scientists proposed a system design that considers both technical and economics factors.

Authors of the “World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2023” define the future role of nuclear energy in the global energy mix as “irrelevant” and “marginal.” The authors add that there were 407 operational reactors producing 365 GW in the middle of the year, which is less than installed capacity predictions for solar by the end of the year.

The French government and EDF have struck a deal on nuclear electricity prices to shield consumers from increases and enable the state-owned utility to fund new reactor construction, drawing criticism from energy-intensive businesses.

In a recent study, researchers from the European Environmental Bureau (EEB), the Stockholm School of Economics (SSE), and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) questioned the planned development of new nuclear capacities in the energy strategies of the United States and certain European countries.

While the French Constitutional Council is preparing to issue new provisions to support the deployment of new nuclear reactors this summer, nearly 800 scientists gathered around a platform to call for the end of the new nuclear program.

Germany’s shutdown of nuclear power plants in April did not result in a ramp-up of lignite-fired power plants, despite concerns. Instead, there has been a significant increase in the share of renewables in the electricity mix, and the proportion of coal-generated electricity has fallen by more than 20%.

The latest World Nuclear Industry Status Report shows that nominal net nuclear generating capacity fell by 0.4 GW between 2020 and 2021, even though six new reactors were switched on throughout the world last year. This brought the share of nuclear power in the global electricity mix to below 10% for the first time in four decades.

A mixture of home-grown fossil fuels, possibly including fracked shale gas; clean power; nuclear; hydrogen; and smarter grids, apparently in that order, will make up the UK’s proposed energy security response in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Brussels is ignoring the requests of some EU member states, including Germany, as well as the assessments of experts. The German government has spoken out clearly against including nuclear power and gas-fired power plants in the EU taxonomy.

The latest World Nuclear Industry Status Report shows that the world’s operational nuclear capacity grew by just 400 MW in 2020, with generation falling by 4%. By contrast, renewables grew by 256 GW and clean energy production rose by 13%. “Nuclear power is irrelevant in today’s electricity capacity market,” the report’s main author, Mycle Schneider, told pv magazine.