DEAR News Of The Area,

I am amused that Bruce Murray (NOTA 16 January 2025) is again spouting nuclear power fantasies, claiming that Australia could build 6 GW of nuclear power for only $A 60 billion ($A 10,000/kW).

Meanwhile, back in the real world, nuclear construction costs are 200 percent higher.

In America two Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear reactors – the kind favoured by Mr Dutton – cost $US 35 billion ($A 53.7 billion) for a total 2.2 GW of capacity or $A 24,400/kW. Vogtle 3 and 4 were $US 23 billion over budget and seven years late, driving Westinghouse into bankruptcy.

It gets worse in Britain, where two unfinished EPR nuclear reactors are 7 years behind schedule and way over budget.

Construction costs for Hinkley Point C soared to £48 billion ($A 92.6 billion) for 3.2 GW of capacity or $A 28,400/kW.

The builder, Electricité de France (EDF), collapsed in 2022 and had to be bailed out by the French government.

EDF is now 100 percent government owned.

These two countries, with 70 years of experience building and operating nuclear plants, could not build a new reactor for less than $A 24,000/kW, so, how on earth could an inexperienced country like Australia do it for $A 10,000/kW? It’s just a deluded fantasy.

Real world data also debunks the claim that nuclear reactors operate for 60 to 80 years.

The average age of operating reactors is only 32.1 years, and no reactor has operated longer than 55 years.

Beznau-1 in Switzerland, opened in 1969 and suffered several outages and “incidents” during its operating life, including when two workers were exposed to “inadmissible” levels of radiation in 2009.

The plant is scheduled to close permanently in a few years, due to rising maintenance costs and poor economic performance.

Globally, the average age of the 213 permanently closed reactors is just 28.3 years.

In the USA, 41 nuclear reactors have permanently closed, with a mean age of 22.8 years. Although licensed to operate for 40 years, only 9 reactors reached that age. 32 were closed early for mainly economic reasons.

The reality is that nuclear fission is the most expensive, most dangerous, radioactive way of generating electricity. Australia does not need these nuclear fantasies.

Regards,
Kenneth HIGGS,
Raymond Terrace.