Why is nuclear power important?

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In the global shift to clean energy, nuclear power and hydropower are the two main clean energy sources that can provide uninterrupted power. Nuclear power already accounts for a quarter of global low-carbon electricity, providing reliable power, supporting grid stability, and complementing variable renewables. Nuclear power does not release carbon during production and contributes to security of energy supply and clean energy transition. Compared to other sources of electricity, nuclear power has the lowest life-cycle carbon footprint and uses smaller materials and footprint. Although nuclear power faces the challenge of high upfront costs, it can provide low-cost and low-carbon energy in the long run. Nuclear power is also one of the safest sources of energy, and nuclear waste is strictly managed. World leaders and environmentalists are increasingly recognizing the benefits of nuclear power and working to expand its capacity to meet climate and energy needs.

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Why is nuclear power an important aspect of advancing clean energy?

Only two forms of clean energy can currently provide the scale of power needed to keep electricity flowing 24/7, while the world transitions away from fossil fuels. Both hydropower and nuclear power offer the non-stop baseload power required for sustainable economic growth and improved human welfare. 

Nuclear energy already provides around a quarter of the world’s low-carbon electricity. It offers large amount of reliable, dispatchable power providing stability and resilience to the electrical grid and backing up variable renewables such as solar and wind when sunshine or wind are lacking.  

According to a 2022 report from the International Energy Agency (IEA): “Nuclear energy can help make the energy sector's journey away from unabated fossil fuels faster and more secure.”  

Wind and solar are expected to lead the push to replace fossil fuels. But IEA experts advise that electricity grids also need more stable, resilient and dispatchable power to keep the flow of energy going non-stop. This cannot currently be provided by renewables alone. 

Gas has been providing this stability, but it still emits greenhouse gases. Hydropower can also provide grid stability, but only in specific environments. 

Like hydro, nuclear power does not release any carbon during its use. 

Aside from its low carbon credentials, nuclear power has other features that further support energy supply security and the clean energy transition. For example, one large nuclear power plant can replace multiple coal-fired power plants to provide the same level of energy. Or small modular reactors could be slotted in to replace the old coal-fired plants of similar size, on the same site. 

Energy-intensive industries, such as steel production, which use coal for heating and hydrogen production, could also be decarbonized using nuclear power, thanks to the ability of advanced reactors to produce high temperature steam. 

Nuclear electricity production costs are less sensitive to changes in fuel prices than electricity from oil and gas. Uranium is available from a range of diverse producer countries, and is incredibly energy dense, meaning comparatively low volumes are required. Enough uranium fuel for several years of electricity production can also be easily stored on the site of nuclear power plants. 

When compared with other sources of electricity from cradle to grave, nuclear energy has the lowest carbon footprint, uses fewer materials and takes up less land. For example, solar power needs more than 17 times as much material and 46 times as much land to produce one unit of energy. 

Nuclear power is also the second safest source of energy in the world and nuclear waste is carefully managed and regulated. Nuclear energy has some challenges, including high upfront costs. But over their long lifetime, nuclear power plants produce some of the most competitively priced low-carbon energy. 

As IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi wrote in his recent op-ed for the World Economic Forum in Davos: “Nuclear is one of the safest, cleanest, least environmentally burdensome and — ultimately, over the lifetime of a nuclear power plant — one of the cheapest sources of energy available.” 

These benefits are being increasingly recognised by environmental activists and world leaders. For example, at COP28 in Dubai, leaders from 22 countries came together to sign a declaration to triple global nuclear energy capacity by 2050 to meet climate goals and energy needs.  

The news comes from: International Day of Clean Energy: Why Nuclear Power? | IAEA