Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney was in the Washington suburbs yesterday to give a speech to the Northern Virginia Technology Council. During a post-speech Q&A, the Governor was asked a question about the future viability of nuclear energy:
"I'm afraid building a nuclear power plant in our country today would require us first to hire the French to show us how to do it because they've been building 'em and we haven't,"For more, including video, click here. A couple of points:
- While a new nuclear power plant hasn't been built in the U.S. in a few decades, both General Electric and Westinghouse have been building them overseas in the interim, gaining valuable construction experience, especially in Asia.
- While French nuclear giant AREVA is a leader in the industry, it is important to note that its reactor technology is essentially built on a Westinghouse design.
Comments
Of course, they have had a strong presence in the component replacement market, but that is a different skill set from starting up a new project.
Perhap he is just unaware that, like it or not, nuclear companies are global in scope. A couple of AREVA's recent jobs illustrate that fact: reactor vessel heads were forged in Japan, machined in France, transported on a Russian plane, and installed in a U.S. nuclear plant.
I would be as pleased as anyone else if the forging and machining could be done in the U.S., but national pride should not stand in the way of national progress.
David Walters
I read Romney's words ("I'm afraid...") as expressing regret for his preception of a skills gap in the US.
nada:
Flamesville is of course Calgary, Alberta, Canada. I think you mean Flamenville.