DTI Minister Alan Johnson will launch the Energy Review to help deal with the threat of climate change

The consultation questions will broadly be based on Government intention to ensure low-carbon, secure and affordable supplies of energy to the UK. NIA expects a set of questions focussed on an array of issues; the extent of Government intervention and responsibility is likely to be the core theme of the consultation, looking perhaps at specific areas such as energy market operations, transmission and distribution networks, and skills and research for future technologies. The urgency with which measures should be implemented is also a key issue which will hopefully be addressed. We hope to see questions surrounding measures that might be taken to suppress market volatility as well as lengthy planning and licensing regulations that discourage investment in new projects. Fuel poverty and the case for energy efficiency, are also likely to feature. In addition to these issues, NIA hopes to find questions in the consultation document pertaining to nuclear energy in particular.

The nuclear industry is typically presented in a negative light; there is now a window of opportunity to highlight the benefits of the nuclear option and demonstrate the role it can play in combating climate change and securing reliable supplies of electricity. The many advantages of nuclear, often ignored or taken for granted, can be underlined in consultation responses and media interviews, and in the many speaking requests, political events, industry conferences and local community occasions. There are simple messages that the industry can use in these instances in the year ahead.

The nuclear industry has much to be proud of; nuclear supplies 20% of the UK's, electricity and has an exemplary safety record and has supplied as much as a third of the country's electricity to homes and business safely and reliably since 1956. Few people outside the industry know that France generates over 75% of its electricity from nuclear power, making it self sufficient for most of its electricity needs.
It is now widely known, that the UK will face an energy gap in the next 20 years. The closure of eleven of our twelve nuclear power stations over the next 20 years, along with coal fired stations shutdowns, will result in a 30% gap in our electricity generation capability. Our environmental targets to reduce carbon emissions imply using fewer fossil fuel sources. Renewable sources of electricity, supplying 3% of our electricity, while essential, can not fill the electricity shortfall on their own. At a time when the UK is becoming a net importer of energy, how can we face these challenges?

The only realistic way to secure energy supply will be through a balanced energy mix. A balanced energy policy, including gas, coal, energy efficiency, renewables and nuclear will reduce the UK's dependency on imported fuels. Nuclear provides a large scale, reliable source of electricity, and combined with a balanced mix of other sources, will help protect businesses and consumers from electricity price spikes as we have recently seen due to rising gas prices and supply shortages in Europe.

Thanks to people like Professor James Lovelock, nuclear has been recognised as a virtually carbon dioxide free source of energy, making it a valuable contributor in the battle against climate change. Generation from nuclear produces no CO2. While it is not often stated in these terms, in the UK, 80% 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.

Sceptics suggest that, "the economics don't add up"; studies demonstrate clearly some of the benefits of nuclear power, for example, that the fuel cost represents a very small fraction of the total generating costs, unlike other sources, which expose it as an economically competitive form of power generation. Generation costs are stable and predictable, offering protection to domestic and industrial consumers against volatile oil and gas prices.

The industry is repeatedly tackled with the question of waste. Yet, the UK has managed its radioactive waste from nuclear power safely for over half a century. We can remind audiences that waste is currently stored in a safe, monitored and retrievable form and securely contained, with no effect on humans or the environment. Other countries have already demonstrated that safe and secure long-term management and permanent disposal of nuclear waste is technically feasible.

The nuclear industry is a world class, competitive industry. It consists of forty thousand highly skilled professionals with the technical expertise needed to build a new generation of reactors. Advanced design reactors are being licensed and built in countries such as Finland, France and China. We have the capability and the people to do the same here. If politicians, the media and the public are aware of these facts, the nuclear industry has a better chance for a new build future.