Debate has erupted over nuclear energy’s role in Australia’s shift from fossil fuels. Could it work? And why is it so controversial?
Australia is in the middle of an unprecedented energy revolution, switching from the fossil fuel-powered electricity grid that’s been the bedrock of the nation’s economy for decades to clean energy, through a rush of renewables as wind and solar farms spring up across the country.
Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen is taunting Dutton over what he calls his implausible, expensive and dangerous plans.The process, invisible to the naked eye, is called atomic fission. Plant operators fire a neutron into uranium or plutonium material and that collision splits atoms, releasing energy in the form of heat as well as yet more neutrons. A chain reaction kicks off as more of those neutrons fly about striking other atoms.
Seven years later, the Howard government asked Telstra chief executive and trained nuclear physicist Ziggy Switkowski to investigate the merits of nuclear power in Australia. That report delivered a hammer blow to the industry. Switkowski found that nuclear power could compete economically with coal power only if a politically contentious carbon tax was imposed.
Renewable energy advocates point out that investors are flocking to large-scale wind and solar projects, which are pumping cheaper energy into the grid and outcompeting coal. The Australian Energy Market Operator , which manages the electricity grid, says a grid based on renewables will be just as reliable as a system centred on baseload power.Speed is of the essence, say climate scientists.
GenCost forecast that one megawatt hour of power from a small modular reactor in 2030 would cost between $200 and $350 per megawatt hour.
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