Key academics dispute alleged nuclear renaissance

December 17, 2009
Talk of a nuclear renaissance has been going on for most of this decade and it has only heated up with the climate debate, but a trio of anti-nuclear academics in a press conference yesterday reportedthe industry still has a lot to overcome. Support for the carbon-free power resource is a major plank in an emerging Senate climate plan (RT, Dec-11).
Nuclear plants could collect higher energy rents in organized markets as marginal units are forced to pay carbon costs. But the plants still cost a lot to build and all of the early proposals on the table are counting on government loan guarantees.
The academics are:
• Senior Fellow for Economic Analysis at the Institute for Energy & Environment at the Vermont Law School, Mark Cooper;
• Professor of energy studies at the University of Greenwich, London, Stephen Thomas, and
• Institute for Energy & Environmental Research President Arjun Makhijani.
DOE could announce the first of its loan guarantees for new nuclear before the end of the year.
But that comes as projects around the world are seeing initial cost estimates balloon and a recent report by Citigroup claimed only massive government investment would spur new plants.
"The reality is that capital markets will not finance new reactors because demand growth has slowed, reactors cost much more than available alternatives and they face too many technology, marketplace and policy risks," said Cooper. "So nuclear advocates have demanded a massive increase in direct federal subsidies to bail the industry out."
The existing loan guarantee program has $18.5 billion earmarked for nuclear plants, while the Senate Energy & Natural Resource Committee's contribution to that chamber's climate package calls for unlimited loan guarantees.
Another Senate bill would offer up to $1 trillion in loan guarantees to help build 100 new nuclear plants.

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