Antinuclear

Abbott’s new energy white paper spruiks Small Modular Nuclear Reactors (SMRs)

 nuclear is pricing itself out of most markets..

Abbott’s new energy white paper to consider nuclear power REneweconomy By Giles Parkinson on 17 December 2013 The Abbott government is to consider the possibility of introducing nuclear power into Australia, in particular small modular reactors, as part of its new energy white paper.

An issues paper released by Industry Minister Ian MacFarlane on Tuesday notes that slow development in carbon capture and storage, and difficulties with hydro,  means that nuclear technologies continue “to present an option for future reliable energy that can be readily dispatched into the market.”

It also says: “A growing area of global interest is in the use of small modular reactors, which have the potential to reduce the cost uncertainties and construction timeframes associated with current generation reactor designs.

“These reactors could be factory built, highly standardised and even used in locations without advanced infrastructure. The smaller size of the reactors may allow for more flexible deployment, making nuclear electricity available to isolated areas or countries with small or distributed electricity grid systems that cannot support conventional large-scale nuclear power.”

A spokeswoman for MacFarlane said the EWP process will be comprehensive. “However, the Coalition has no plans to pursue nuclear energy.  Nuclear energy won’t become part of Australia’s energy mix without bipartisan and community support,” she said in an emailed statement.

Still, nuclear is a favoured option of many of the inner circle advising the Abbott government, who believe that renewable energy cannot deliver the capacity and reliability required of a modern economy. Both MacFarlane, and his predecessor, Martin Ferguson, are predisposed to the technology.

It suits their traditional view of centralised energy production and the hub and spoke model of the electricity grid, which relies on decade of sunk investment  in transmission and distribution networks. These investments are now being challenged by new technologies such as solar and storage that could usher in more widespread micro-grids and distributed generation.

The last EWP – completed in 2012 – paid scant attention to nuclear, noting that it did not enjoy a “social consensus” in Australia, nor did it have much of an economic case, although it left the door open for future governments to consider it..

Pro-nuclear advocates have used assessment by the Australian Energy Technology Assessment, which claimed that nuclear was one of the cheapest options for low emissions technology.

However, the AETA assessment failed to calculate the cost of capital for nuclear. When someone did factor in the cost of capital – the UK government when it decided it wanted to build a new plant – the cost of nuclear took a different turn. The UK government, with few renewable options, will pay French and Chinese government-owned companies more than $150/MWh, indexed for inflation, for a new nuclear reactor in the south-west of England.

However, wind contracts being written for less than $50/MWh in the US and Brazil, and solar contracts being written for less than $100/MWh, and falling rapidly, the view of many, particularly in Germany, is that nuclear is pricing itself out of most markets…….. http://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/abbotts-new-energy-white-paper-to-consider-nuclear-power-90047

December 18, 2013 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, politics