Antinuclear

Dutton’s nuclear plan will require huge subsidies

AFR 12 Mar 24

So the two prongs of Peter Dutton’s energy plan are to adopt nuclear power and to ramp up production of gas? (“Coalition to seek ‘social licence’ for nuclear power,” March 11)

Well, we know which of the two prongs will actually happen, and it won’t be the nuclear one.

To go down the nuclear path would require massive government subsidies – not just in the construction phase, but over their entire life of the power stations.

This is what is happening in France, where nuclear supplies 70 per cent of the nation’s electricity, and in Ontario, where the figure is 59 per cent.

Otherwise, the government would have to set electricity prices at a level that would underwrite the power companies’ profitability – irrespective of whether those prices were competitive with other forms of energy.

Either way, nuclear is not viable in Australia – at least, not on economic grounds.

Ken Enderby, Concord, NSW

Coalition must consider nuclear cost

Peter Dutton’s nuclear ideas (“Coalition to seek ‘social licence’ for nuclear power,” March 11) fly in the face of evidence.

The cost to build, the huge subsidies, the intellectual capital required, the siting, the water use, the lead-up time for power generation, the cost to consumers, the decommissioning costs, the half-life of plutonium 239 – none of this will deter him. He will continue to juxtapose the idea of nuclear against the reality of renewables.

He and his party will continue to stymie, mock and disparage our transition efforts. The Coalition’s “all of the above” approach sounds open-minded but disguises the fact that “all” does not include the necessary all-out push for renewables.

Nuclear has no chance of getting us to where we need to be, either in terms of emissions or in developing our crucial renewables industries.

Fiona Colin, Malvern East, Victoria……………………. https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/dutton-s-nuclear-plan-will-require-huge-subsidies-20240311-p5fbhj

March 12, 2024 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics