Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary are all planning to build new nuclear power plants. But according to a new study by Energy Brainpool, commissioned by Greenpeace Energy, they could also opt for controllable renewable power plants. These are cost-competitive with nuclear, at least as reliable, and also allow for energy independence, write Philipp Heidinger, Fabian Huneke and Simon Göà from Energy Brainpool. … [Read more...]
How the European Commission, European Court of Justice and Member States are scaring away investors in the energy sector
Both EU institutions and member states are actively undermining the investment climate in the energy sector, writes Alan Riley, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Statecraft in London. The European Commission is undermining investor protection by its determination to apply EU state aid law to arbitration awards. Member States are disrupting investor expectations through arbitrary political interventions in the energy sector. Worst of all, the … [Read more...]
The Iran nuclear deal: to leave or not to leave
The future of the Iran nuclear deal hangs in the balance as the May 12 deadline set by US President Trump to âfixâ the deal or walk away from it approaches. Rachel Brandenburg, director of the Atlantic Councilâs Middle East Security Initiative interviews Matthew Kroenig, deputy director for strategy in the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, and Aaron Stein, senior fellow in the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, about whether the … [Read more...]
Egyptâs $60 billion bet on nuclear energy
Rosatomâs recent deal with Egypt to build a 4800 MW capacity nuclear plant is one of the largest nuclear energy deals in this century, writes Dan Yurman nuclear energy specialist and author of the Neutron Bytes blog. It is one of several giant nuclear projects taking shape in the Middle East, Yurman notes. … [Read more...]
Fukushima seven years later: case closed?
Official investigations into the Fukushima nuclear disaster conclude that upholding international safety standards alone guarantees nuclear safety, But the plant managerâs account of the catastrophe sheds  new light on the story, writes Franck Guarnieri of MINES ParisTech university. Courtesy: The Conversation.  … [Read more...]
Reducing the costs of nuclear energy in three steps
New nuclear plants shouldnât have to be expensive, writes David Hess of  the World Nuclear Association. To reduce nuclear costs - and project times - three things need to happen: access to cheap financing should be facilitated, regulatory barriers should be lowered, and industry should improve its performance. … [Read more...]
How Shellâs new Sky scenario achieves net zero emissions
In Shell's recently published Sky climate scenario, the energy system reaches net zero emissions by 2070 using several technologies that are at an early stage. David Hone, Chief Climate Change Advisor at Shell, explains how this would work and why Shell regards this scenario as plausible. Courtesy David Honeâs Shell Climate Change blog … [Read more...]
India slashes plans for new nuclear reactors by two-thirds
India has decided to cut its planned nuclear power plant construction by two-thirds. This will further expand the countryâs use of coal for electrical power generation, writes Dan Yurman, nuclear energy specialist and author of the Neutron Bytes blog. … [Read more...]
Why nuclear fusion is gaining steam â again
Although no breakthrough has happened in nuclear fusion since it was hailed as the clean energy source of the future in the 1970s, there are reasons to be optimistic now, writes Scott L. Montgomery of the University of Washington. There have been advances in technology, two large reactors are being built and a dozen startups have become active. "The dream of fusion power now seems certain to neither die or remain merely a dream."Â Courtesy The … [Read more...]
Japan’s new energy strategy should boost both renewables and nuclear power
Japan needs both renewables and nuclear energy in its energy mix to reduce dependence on imports and lower greenhouse gas emissions, writes David Livingston of the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center. According to Livingston, it is in the interest of the international community that the country's new energy strategy, which is expected in the middle of this year, should boost their share in the energy mix. … [Read more...]
Southeast Europe needs more nuclear power to head off energy crisis
Southeast Europe is headed for an energy crisis. The region has an energy infrastructure that is unreliable, inefficient, and unsustainable, while at the same time it is faced with the need to reduce dependence on external sources and conform to EU climate and air quality regulations. The best way out, argues Tim Yeo, Chairman of the New Nuclear Watch Institute, is to invest in new nuclear capacity. … [Read more...]
Chinaâs green energy revolution has saved the country from catastrophic dependence on fossil fuel imports
Chinaâs shift to green energy has made a huge contribution to reducing the countryâs dependence on imported fossil fuels, write researchers John A. Mathews and Xin Huang. But for Chinaâs renewables revolution, the world would have faced potentially catastrophic geopolitical tensions over oil and gas. Courtesy John Mathewsâ Global Green Shift blog. … [Read more...]
‘Pro-nuclear environmentalists’ in denial about power/weapons connections
Claims by self-styled 'pro-nuclear environmentalists' that "nuclear energy prevents the spread of nuclear weapons" and "peace is furthered when a nation embraces nuclear power" do not withstand scrutiny, writes Jim Green, editor of the Nuclear Monitor newsletter. Green looks at the conclusions of some studies which, he says, downplay the troubling connections between nuclear power and weapons. Courtesy Nuclear Monitor. … [Read more...]
Small modular reactors for nuclear power: hope or mirage?
Supporters of nuclear power hope that small nuclear reactors, unlike large plants, will be able to compete economically with other sources of electricity. But according to M.V. Ramana, a Professor at the University of British Columbia, this is likely to be a vain hope. In fact, according to Ramana, in the absence of a mass market, they may be even more expensive than large plants. … [Read more...]
Rapid wind and solar cost declines keep pushing fossil fuels out. How far can they go?
Rapid cost declines made renewable energy the United Statesâ cheapest available source of new electricity, without subsidies, in 2017, writes Silvio Marcacci of think tank Energy Innovation. In many parts of the U.S., building new wind is cheaper than running existing coal, while nuclear and natural gas arenât far behind, notes Marcacci. As renewable energy costs continue their relentless decline, they keep pushing fossil fuels further from … [Read more...]
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