Nuclear Electricity in the CEE Region: Current State and Development Prospects

1
Nuclear Electricity in the CEE RegionCurrent
State and Development Prospects

• R I Facer, NENP-NPTDS, IAEA

2
Blue, countries with NPPs, Pink, countries that
considered NPPs
3
Reasons why not proceeded in the past

• Finance
• Nuclear economics unattractive
• Infrastructure costs high
• Costs of new facilities high
• Liability for waste uncertain
• Manpower unavailable
• Lack of skills
• Lack of trained manpower
• Public distrust
• Private industry decisions
• Alternatives available

4
Changing conditions

• Economics of alternative energy sources
• Rising price of fossil fuels
• Nuclear continuing in many countries
• Identified success for countries that have
  nuclear power
• Security of supply
• Independence from single supplier
• Growing environmental concerns over fossil fuels

5
Global Nuclear Capacity
6
World Primary Energy Demand
Fossil fuels will continue to dominate the global
energy mix, while oil remains the leading fuel
7
Into Uncharted TerritoryThe Earth out of Balance
650 600 550 500 450 400 350 300 250 200

IPCC Projection
CO2 trapped in Ice Cores (ppm)
Vostok Record IPCC Scenario
Current (2003)
400 300 200
100 0 Age (thousands
of years before present)
8
Climate Change It Is Already Occurring
An increasing body of observations gives a
collective picture of a warming World. There is
new and stronger evidence that most of the
warming observed over the last 50 years is
attributable to human activities.
9
Technologies Exist to Begin to Take Action
R Socolow, Science 2004
10
Agency Activities

• Regional Europe TC Projects
• Operational Support
• Safety/regulatory support
• National Projects
• Energy Planning, capacity building
• License renewal/Life extension
• Infrastructure support
• Specific national requests

11
Strengthening capabilities for NPP performance
and service life

• Experience over the past four years

12
World Energy today

13
Prognosis for the future

• World demand increases
• Asia increases much faster than world average
• Fossil fuel use has massive increase
• Environmental stress

14
CEE

15
Nuclear Support

• In the Countries where nuclear power contributes
  significantly to the national electricity supply
  there is broad political consensus that nuclear
  power should continue

16
CEE Nuclear plans (existing nuclear countries)

17
Other Countries plans

• Several Countries have expressed interest
  recently, particularly since Paris Conference
  Nuclear Power for the 21st Century at which 34
  Ministers presented speeches discussing their
  countries interest in possible nuclear power
  plants in the future.
• At present there are 24 nuclear plants under
  construction in 9 countries

18
European Green Paper

• Towards a European Strategy for the Security of
  Energy Supply (2000)
• Three Main Points
• Increasing Dependence upon external energy
  sources (70 by 2030)
• Little scope to influence energy supply
  conditions
• Not in a position to respond to challenge of
  Climate Change

19
European Context

• Nuclear can reduce external dependence upon
  fossil energy
• Nuclear can provide energy without Greenhouse Gas
  emissions
• Nuclear can provide diversity of national energy
  supply and improved national energy supply
  security

20
Nuclear Availability

• Technology available now for large nuclear plant,
  in an integrated grid system
• Several plants being built worldwide that could
  be used in Europe
• Several designs approaching implementation for
  small or medium sized reactors that could be used
  on a more localised basis.
• European Infrastructure exists that could support
  the introduction of a nuclear plant for any
  country in Europe

21
Nuclear fuel and waste

• Recent speech by US Secretary of State for Energy
• US sees fuel cycle states offering cradle to
  grave fuel cycle services, leasing fuel and then
  taking it back for reprocessing and disposition.
• This service is already available from Russia,
  and hence should develop into the normal means of
  fuel supply and removal service

22
Waste storage

• Generally this is a technically solved problem,
  and the future position of return of fuel to the
  supplier country should reduce the number of
  storage locations that are needed.

23
Nuclear and Renewables

• Nuclear power should not be seen as competing
  with renewable energy systems
• Both renewable systems and high quality nuclear
  power are needed to ensure a secure energy supply
  system

24
The next steps

• Nuclear needs to be recognised as a significant
  potential energy source for Europe
• For countries that do not already operate nuclear
  power plants the IAEA can provide support to
  develop and strengthen the Infrastructure in
  these countries
• Action is needed quickly to avoid a significant
  problem for Europe in terms of energy supply
  security

25

• The end, thank you