Posted: 03/31/2005
Growing Energy Requirements Mean Bright Future For Nuclear
NCPA E-Team Scholars Say Demand for Electricity Makes Nuclear Essential
DALLAS (March 31, 2005) – Growing worldwide demand for electricity to maintain current living standards in developed countries and raise those in developing nations may make development of nuclear energy sources essential, according to scholars with the E-Team project at the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA).
“Building new nuclear power plants is essential if we are to meet growing energy requirements while also addressing environmental concerns,” said NCPA E-Team Adjunct Scholar Larry Foulke. Foulke is immediate past president of the American Nuclear Society and co-author of an NCPA brief analysis on the future of nuclear energy. (Burning Bright: Nuclear Energy’s Future)
The Energy Information Administration forecasts a 50 percent increase in electricity demand by 2025 which combined with positive changes in the nuclear power industry, rising prices for fossil fuels and environmental concerns, mean nuclear energy will likely grow as a percentage of the nation’s energy mix, according to the NCPA brief analysis:
- Consolidation within the nuclear industry, streamlined federal re-licensing procedures and improved operating efficiency at nuclear facilities have lowered cost per kilowatt-hour from 3.31 to 1.7 cents. Only hydroelectric plants have lower costs.
- New technologies and improved knowledge about risk factors have made it possible to produce much safer light-water nuclear plants with fewer standardized parts.
- Costs for nuclear power could become even lower if emerging technologies, such as for pebble-bed reactors, prove to be commercially feasible, perhaps even less than natural gas.
“Nuclear power will reduce our reliance on imported supplies of oil and natural gas,” said NCPA Senior Fellow H. Sterling Burnett, who co-authored the brief analysis. “And compared to other significant sources of electricity, nuclear power has many environmental benefits.”