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Nuclear Energy Having a Global Revival 04/23 06:05
(AP) -- The 1986 Chernobyl disaster fueled global fears about nuclear power
and slowed its development in Europe and elsewhere. Four decades later,
however, there's a revival around the world, a trend that has been given a big
boost by war in the Middle East.
Over 400 nuclear reactors are operational in 31 countries, while about 70
more are under construction. Nuclear power accounts for producing about 10% of
the world's electricity, equivalent to about a quarter of all sources of
low-carbon power.
Nuclear reactors have seen steady improvements, adding more safety features
and making them cheaper to build and operate.
While Chernobyl and the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan diminished
the appetite for such power sources, it was clear years ago that there probably
would be a revival, said Fatih Birol, executive director of the International
Energy Agency.
With the war in the Middle East, "I am 100% sure nuclear is coming back," he
added.
"It's seen as a secure electricity generation system, and we will see that
the comeback of nuclear will be very strong, both in (the) Americas, in Europe
and in Asia," Birol told The Associated Press.
Nuclear energy reliance stays strong
The United States is the world's largest producer of nuclear power, with 94
operational reactors accounting for about 30% of global generation of nuclear
electricity. And it is increasing efforts to develop nuclear energy capacity
with a goal to quadruple it by 2050.
"The world cannot power its industries, meet the demands of artificial
intelligence, or secure its energy future without nuclear power," U.S.
Undersecretary of State Thomas DiNanno said last month.
China operates 61 nuclear reactors and is leading the world in building new
units, with nearly 40 under construction with a goal to surpass the U.S. and
become the global leader in nuclear capacity.
European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has acknowledged that it was
Europe's "strategic mistake" to cut nuclear energy and outlined new initiatives
to encourage building power plants.
Russia, meanwhile, has taken a strong lead in exporting its nuclear
know-how, building 20 reactors worldwide.
Chernobyl's Reactor No. 4 exploded on April 26, 1986, while Ukraine was
still part of the Soviet Union. The accident contaminated nearby areas and
spewed radiation across Europe.
Ukraine still relies heavily on nuclear plants to generate about half of its
electricity. Those plants have played a vital role after Russia sent troops
into Ukraine in 2022. Moscow's forces have captured Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia
Nuclear Power Plant, and Kyiv accused Russia of a drone attack on the
protective containment structure covering the damaged Chernobyl reactor.
Japan has restarted 15 reactors after reviewing the lessons of the
earthquake and tsunami that damaged the Fukushima plant, and 10 more are in the
process of getting approval to restart.
South Africa has the only nuclear power plant on the African continent,
although Russia is building one in Egypt, and several other African nations are
exploring the technology.
"The momentum we are seeing today is the result of a growing recognition
that reliable, low-carbon electricity will be essential to meet the world's
rising energy demand," said Rafael Grossi, director general of the
International Atomic Energy Agency.
EU eyes nuclear expansion
Europe sought to wean itself off Russian energy after the Ukraine conflict,
but its dependence on hydrocarbons was underlined by the war in the Middle East.
The European Commission has shifted its perception of nuclear energy and
views it as part of clean energy, along with wind and solar power, to achieve
climate goals.
In 1990, nuclear energy accounted for about a third of Europe's electricity;
now it's only about 15%, and von der Leyen has acknowledged that its reliance
on imported fossil fuels puts it at a disadvantage.
"I believe that it was a strategic mistake for Europe to turn its back on a
reliable, affordable source of low-emissions power," she said recently. "In the
last years, we see a global revival of nuclear energy. And Europe wants to be
part of it."
The EU is considering the development of Small Modular Reactors. Expected to
become operational in the early 2030s, they are seen as cheaper and faster to
build and more flexible than traditional reactors.
France and a few other EU members, including Sweden and Finland, have
spearheaded nuclear power. On the other hand, Germany, Austria and Italy are
among the EU members that outlawed its use.
In a major policy reversal last year, Belgium repealed a law that demanded
the closure of its reactors and extended their lifespan. Spain, meanwhile,
still plans to phase out its nuclear capacity and shut down its seven
operational reactors between 2027 and 2035.
France remains a nuclear powerhouse
With 57 reactors at 19 plants, France relies on nuclear power for nearly 70%
of its electricity.
Successive governments have backed nuclear power as central to France's
energy independence, undeterred by the Chernobyl disaster. In 2022, President
Emmanuel Macron announced plans to build six new pressurized water reactors,
aiming to cut greenhouse gas emissions and support the transition to low-carbon
energy.
The COVID-19 pandemic, combined with the gas supply crunch triggered by the
conflict in Ukraine, "revealed the limits of deploying renewable electricity
and Europe's dependence on gas," said Nicolas Goldberg, a partner at
Paris-based Colombus Consulting.
"France has therefore been reinforced in its strategy of maintaining its
existing nuclear plants, which means extending their lifespan as much as
possible," he said.
Germany stands firm in phasing it out
Decades of anti-nuclear protests in Germany, stoked by past accidents, had
pressured successive governments to end using a technology that critics saw as
unsafe and unsustainable. Germany switched off its last three nuclear reactors
in 2023, the final step in plans that had been drawn up by governments of
various political stripes over two decades.
A significant nuclear revival in Europe's biggest economy still looks
far-fetched, despite recent talk among some in Chancellor Friedrich Merz's
center-right bloc about being open to a possible future generation of small
modular reactors.
"The decision is irreversible -- I regret it, but that's how it is," Merz
said, noting the plant operators's "consistent answer was: 'We are too far
along with demolition.'"
Russian domestic nuclear expansion and exporting reactors
Russia has aggressively expanded its nuclear power capacity both
domestically and internationally.
It has 34 operational reactors, including eight Chernobyl-type RBMK
reactors, known as the light water graphite reactors, which account for about a
quarter of all nuclear power generation. They have seen extensive
modernizations, adding safety features to fix the inherent design flaw that,
coupled with human error, triggered the Chernobyl disaster.
Key projects under construction include new units at the Kursk, Leningrad
and Smolensk sites, a prospective plant in the Far East, and prospective
floating nuclear units.
Russia also is building 20 reactors in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle
East, and has signed contracts to launch construction in several other
countries.
Russia has built the first nuclear reactor for neighboring ally Belarus,
which has seen a third of its territory contaminated from the Chernobyl
accident.
"Belarusian authorities are using the changed context and the so-called
'nuclear renaissance' to claim that we are acting like everyone else in the
world, rather than solving the problems of Belarusians in the contaminated
territories," said Irina Sukhiy, founder of the Belarus ecological group Green
Network.
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