Nuclear Industry Eyes a Smaller Renaissance

[bananas]

The "Nuclear Renaissance" keeps getting smaller...and smaller...and smaller...
...and more expensive...and more expensive...and more expensive...

http://www.usnews.com/blogs/beyond-the-barrel/2008/2/21/nuclear-industry-eyes-a-smaller-renaissance.html

Nuclear Industry Eyes a Smaller Renaissance
February 21, 2008 03:46 PM ET | Marianne Lavelle | Permanent Link


Although 17 companies are preparing license applications for as many as 31 new nuclear power plants, don't expect the "nuclear renaissance," if it happens—at least the first phase of it—to be nearly this big.

The Nuclear Energy Institute, the industry's policy organization, today told a gathering of more than 100 Wall Street analysts that it expects the big group of contenders to winnow itself down for the first wave of new construction. NEI projects that four to eight new power plants will move ahead and be operational by about 2016.

NEI officials estimate the plants to cost $3,200 to $3,500 per kilowatt of capacity—more than double the $1,400 to $1,500 per kilowatt the industry was talking about in 2003, according to some old Nuclear Energy Institute testimony I found. That means each new plant is likely to cost about $5 billion in today's money and $6 billion to $7 billion by the time of completion.

At the top of the nuclear industry's agenda, and that of the Wall Street banks that would finance the plants, is for the federal government to provide loan guarantees for these megaprojects. In the energy bill Congress passed in December, lawmakers gave the industry $18 billion in loan guarantees. But the industry says that to finance eight plants and put them into service by 2016, it would need double that amount.

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[thunder rising]

1. First, the regulation must be in place to protect the public from those deadly facilities

Why do you think the Republicans want to keep radioactive leaks quite?

[Zachstar]

2. Yes Yes! We must protect the bunnies from the nuclear rays!

MORE COAL PLANTS MORE OIL PLANTS!!

Is basically what you are saying in my view. Because calling Fission plants deadly in this day and age makes you look beyond idiotic in my view.

[thunder rising]

5. Wow! A little oversight would be a deal breaker then. Interesting.

[jpak]

3. Just like I predicted, the 2005 GOP Energy bill provided enough Cheneybucks for 6 new nuclear plants

and it looks like only 6 will be built.

Too bad taxpayers will shell out $12 billion in direct subsidies and $18 billion in taxpayer-backed loan guarantees to fund all those $7 billion nukes.

And, the NEI flacks are a pack of lying GOP scum-suckers - "renaissance" my ass...

[GliderGuider]

4. Fine, you win. Now get on with slaying the real dragons.

Anybody with half a brain has known for a few years that nuclear power was going to be a non-finisher in this race, no matter how hard people like Jim Lovelock and NNadir wished upon that star.

Now address the real problems -- too much coal, not enough oil or natural gas.