NIA - The Nuclear Industry Association - Energy Review Talking Points

Energy Review Talking Points

As part of its contribution to the energy debate and the UK Government's energy review the NIA compiled a set of Talking Points about nuclear energy to inform and stimulate discussion of the issues.

The world has changed dramatically over the last few years

The importance of climate change to policy thinking has increased. Security of supply concerns have grown and energy prices across the board have risen sharply, pushed up by global oil and gas prices. In the UK, CO2 emissions continue to rise, progress on energy efficiency and renewables uptake has been disappointing. North Sea oil and gas resources have depleted faster than expected.

New nuclear build in the UK is achievable

Support for nuclear energy is increasing. For example, studies have shown that the public are “willing to accept new nuclear stations if this would help tackle climate change”, and keen to learn more about the implications of potential new nuclear build. There are challenges to achieving this, but if government, regulators and industry work together then these can be overcome. The workforce and supply chain companies, in the UK and world-wide, are capable of delivering a fleet of new reactors.

Nuclear power is a proven form of electricity generation worldwide

Nuclear supplies 16% of the world’s electricity. There are currently over 440 commercial nuclear reactors operating in 34 countries, with a further 28 under construction.

Nuclear energy currently supplies 20% of the UK’s electricity

Nuclear energy has supplied up to a third of the country’s electricity safely and reliably since 1956. The UK industry, with 23 reactors on 12 sites, currently supplies a fifth of the country’s electricity.

The UK needs substantial investment in generation capacity over the next 20 years

Demand from consumers will continue to grow. Many coal-fired stations will not meet emissions legislation and will have to close. Eleven of our twelve nuclear power stations are due to close over the next 20 years. Investment is therefore needed to replace over 30% of today’s generating capacity. The UK has set environmental targets to reduce carbon emissions, which will necessitate using less fossil fuel. Renewable sources of electricity, currently supplying 3% of the UK’s electricity, can not grow fast enough to replace the electricity shortfall, nor can they independently ensure stability.

A balanced energy mix will help to ensure security of energy supply in the UK

A balanced energy mix will reduce the UK’s dependency on imported fuels and protect against the risk of supply interruptions. Diversity guards against the risk of the UK economy becoming uncompetitive due to the unpredictable costs of imported fuel. Nuclear can provide a large scale, reliable source of baseload electricity in a mix with indigenous renewable sources, combined with coal, gas and oil from diverse sources, including the UK’s own production.

Nuclear is a virtually carbon dioxide free source of energy, making it a valuable contributor in the battle against climate change

Nuclear power generation produces negligible CO2, a by-product of fossil fuel generation which is the main cause of global warming. Independent studies have shown that the full lifecycle carbon emissions (which include construction, uranium mining, milling and enrichment, fuel fabrication as well as decommissioning) are a fraction of those for fossil fuels and of the same order as those of renewables such as wind turbines. In the UK, the vast majority of our low-carbon electricity comes from nuclear. The power generated by existing power stations avoids the emissions of 50 million tonnes of CO2 a year – the equivalent of taking half of Britain’s cars off the roads.

The UK’s civil nuclear programme has an outstanding safety record

All facilities are licensed by the industry regulator the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate, part of the Health and Safety Executive. Modern reactors have reliable advanced safety systems – and any imbalance in the normal system operation will lead to automatic shutdown.

Modern nuclear power stations are amongst the most robust, secure structures in the world

The Government’s Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS) is responsible for approving security arrangements within the industry. Power stations are extremely robust structures and have a multi-layered defence against possible terrorist attacks.

Nuclear energy is an economically competitive form of power generation

Unlike for fossil fuel generation, fuel costs represent a small fraction of the total operating costs for nuclear power. As a result, generation costs are stable and predictable. A range of independent studies (Royal Academy of Engineering, OECD), show full nuclear lifecycle costs to be competitive with other sources. This competitiveness improves further when factors such as desirability of meeting policy objectives of cleaner, more secure power sources are taken into account.

The UK has managed its radioactive waste safely for over half a century

All UK wastes are safely managed. Other countries have already demonstrated that safe and secure long-term management and permanent disposal of nuclear wastes is technically feasible. Following successful Government and public consultation, the process for constructing radioactive waste disposal sites is under way in countries such as Finland and Sweden.

World class, competitive industry of highly skilled professionals

The nuclear industry employs 40,000 highly skilled people throughout the UK, with a total of over 80,000 jobs being directly or indirectly linked with the industry. The industry has the capability and expertise to build a new generation of reactors and maintain them throughout their full lifecycle.

Modern reactor designs are more efficient

New reactor designs are being licensed and built in other countries, such as Finland, France, China and Korea. Modern designs are smaller, quicker and cheaper to build. They utilise the latest approaches on safety and produce far less waste than older designs.

Nuclear fuel supplies are assured

Accessible and affordable uranium ore from known reserves in politically stable countries can be assured for the full lifetime of a fleet of new UK reactors. The required amount of fuel is small in volume and is easily stored. A rapid expansion of nuclear power on a worldwide scale would not overturn this position.