28th April 2023
Editorials
Context:
Germany has shut down the last of its nuclear power plants; France, the nuclear powerhouse of the world, is struggling to replenish its stock of ageing reactors.
Global Scenario
- A lot has happened in the last two years. Particularly after the Ukraine war, nuclear power is seeing a renaissance.
- South Korea’s new president has changed the energy policy and committed to increasing the share of nuclear power in the country’s energy mix to 30% by 2030.
- Japan, which should have completely shut down reactors after the Fukushima (accident), is restarting them — 10 have been restarted.
Significance
- Low carbon source: The value that nuclear provides is of being low carbon, firm etc. Firm power is the power that can be sent to the electric grid to be supplied whenever needed.
- Cuts Import Bills: Nuclear energy will also relieve the nation of about $100 billion annually which we spend on importing petroleum and coal.
- A reliable source of Energy: Nuclear power plants are capital-intensive and recent nuclear builds have suffered major cost overruns.