SUMMARY:
We are approaching
a revolution in the way
we generate electricity.
Not intermittent,
expensive electricity
from solar panels.
Not intermittent,
expensive electricity
from those ugly bird
and bat shredders,
called wind turbines.
A new way
to generate
CONSISTENT
electric power,
at a very
reasonable price,
-- SMRs
( small modular
nuclear reactors ).
DETAILS:
There are only two serious
non-intermittent forms
of zero CO2 emissions energy:
Nuclear and hydro power.
Hydro requires
valleys for flooding.
We don't have
enough of those.
New conventional
nuclear power plants
have huge cost and
regulatory approval
problems
-- traditionally
delivered very late,
and far over budget
-- assuming they get
approval to build.
An alternative is building
lots of small nuclear reactors
in factories rather than
a single huge one.
Small modular reactors
(SMRs) are economical.
The major risk
with a conventional
nuclear reactor
is overheating, and
big reactors
also need pumps
to ensure an adequate
flow of cooling water
around the core.
They also need back-up
electricity supplies in case
anything goes wrong.
With a small reactor,
natural convection
is enough to ensure
the core doesn’t overheat.
In 2018, the American
company Nuscale Energy
announced it had gained
regulatory approval
for its SMR design.
Full regulatory approval
should be achieved
this year.
Work should start on
the first operational plant,
in Utah, in two years,
with the first power
delivered in 2026.
Regulatory approval
for Nuscale’s design,
as planned in Utah,
should apply to another
identical design plant
somewhere else.
Nuscale says
the Utah plant
will produce electricity
at a cost somewhat
above an onshore
wind farm, but well
below an offshore
wind farm.
An SMR has
a huge advantage
over wind farms --
a reliable, consistent
electricity supply.
Wind and solar power
need fossil fuel backup
for when the wind
doesn’t blow, or
the sun isn’t shining.
Large-scale nuclear
power plants are not
ramped up and down
to match changes
in electricity demand,
for economic reasons.
SMRs should be
more flexible,
but not ideal
in that regard.