A Westinghouse Electric executive argued bringing nuclear into the energy grid could be done far more cheaply, as the Coalition said it would consider overturning the ban.
The federal government’s $387 billion price tag to replace Australia’s coal-fired power stations with small modular nuclear reactors “doesn’t make sense,” an executive from US manufacturer Westinghouse Electric has claimed, arguing the price could be much cheaper.to replace coal-fired plants with small nuclear reactors, assuming that 70 reactors would be needed. He used the figure to argue they are not viable for future power generation.
Mr O’Brien argued that nuclear reactors could replace coal-fired power plants and help “firm up” renewables. Fortescue Energy chief executive Mark Hutchinson told the Summit that Australia did not need nuclear energy and that it would be time consuming and complicated to get political support. “It’s never going to be the biggest part or driver of the transition, it may have some part to play down the track so people need to avoid thinking nuclear is the solution to the energy transition – it’s not,” Mr Philip said.
“If Australia started today, I could tell you that in the mid-2030s you could have nuclear operating on the grid,” Ms Baranwal said.
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