Evidence from around globe shows there is “significant” potential to cut new-build nuclear costs in the UK by learning from the experiences of other countries, according to the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI). In a new report the ETI said, although recent nuclear projects in North America and Europe have been beset by delays and cost overruns, plants built elsewhere in the world have demonstrated that nuclear energy can be “highly cost competitive”. The report identifies 35 opportunities to drive down costs, spread across eight key categories from project governance and development to policy and regulation. They include building multiple units at a single site and providing government support for financing. The report was produced as part of the ETI’s nuclear cost drivers project and is a summary of a fuller report which is due to be released later this year. It says creating certainty over budgets and scheduling is essential to lowering costs: “In doing so, there is less project risk and higher confidence in successful project delivery, which benefits all stakeholders, including the public and the project developer.
Utility Week 30th April 2018 read more »
The Nuclear Industry Association has welcomed the Energy Technologies Institute’s (ETI) report into nuclear cost drivers which suggests projects could be more competitively costed.
Process Engineering 30th April 2018 read more »
Having incomplete designs when construction starts is one of the biggest cost drivers on new nuclear projects, which energy and engineering experts say must become more efficient to compete with renewables.
New Civil Engineer 1st May 2018 read more »
The West’s nuclear industry has embarked on its biggest public relations push ever in a bid to stay relevant to policymakers increasingly focused on renewables. Recent weeks have seen a coordinated campaign by two of the sector’s top agencies to claw back support for a technology that is struggling to remain economically viable and is in danger of being sidelined in discussions over future energy pathways in Europe and North America. In the U.S., the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) kicked off proceedings in an apparently low-key fashion. With little fanfare, the institute’s website had a facelift in early March, dispensing with its former staid design and adopting a more modern look with bold type and plenty of video.
Green Tech Media 30th April 2018 read more »
