Nuclear Power Has a Second Chance to Prove Itself
Nuclear energy is a rare thing—a carbon-free energy source that isn’t hyped and enjoys bipartisan support in Washington. The big question now is whether new technologies that might lower the costs actually work.
Governments are reconsidering nuclear power, given its ability to provide predictable carbon-free energy. Fission, splitting atoms to release energy, was the wunderkind of the 1960s and 1970s, but fell from favor after disasters at Three Mile Island, Chernobyl and Fukushima.
While there are places where the safety risks and waste problem mean nuclear energy is verboten, notably Germany, most big economies expect to include it in their net-zero energy mix. President Biden’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill included at least $8.5 billion for nuclear energy. The European Union is considering classifying nuclear as green. Britain, Russia, China, Japan and South Korea all want it to play a role. Political backing is important, given the costs and challenges of building new reactors.
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One approach uses existing technologies to build small modular reactors, known as SMRs. They generate anything from a few megawatts to 500, compared with around 1,000 or more for a typical conventional reactor. The controlled fission reaction splits uranium, which heats water into steam, driving a turbine to generate electricity. Water also cools the reactor. SMRs use passive safety features, such as placement underground or in a pool of water, to reduce the need for some more expensive measures. It makes them cheaper to build, but opponents worry it could be a recipe for more disasters.
Many are working on SMRs. Russia’s Rosatom has built SMRs on ships in the Arctic. Oregon-based NuScale has U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission approval for its SMR design, and last month announced a contract to build one in Romania by 2027. British jet-engine maker Rolls Royce recently launched a consortium with Chicago-based Exelon Generation to build SMRs, with the first expected in 2031. China National Nuclear Corporation, EDF and Holtec, among others, also have SMR plans.
wsj.com
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