tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10911751.post2330727589673594121..comments2024-03-07T02:00:01.582-05:00Comments on NEI Nuclear Notes: No Tears, Please, for Nuclear EnergyUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10911751.post-3652891466050161572013-02-28T16:55:53.504-05:002013-02-28T16:55:53.504-05:00Unfortunately the probability of the AP1000s curre...Unfortunately the probability of the AP1000s currently under construction in the USA being completed anywhere near to their current schedules and budgets is very low. There are just far too many first of a kind issues to work out and the two projects are proceeding at the same pace which means they both keep making the same mistakes. It would be nice to think that the experience from the reactors in China would help, but from working in the nuclear industry, I can tell you that the issues usualyl aren't technical, they are regulatory. The NRC is likely much more strict than its equivilent body in China and therefore the sort of issues the American reactors will face will be things that China never had to deal with.<br /><br />It is likely that if a new AP1000 were started after the US projects were near completion that it would be much cheaper and faster to build than those currently under construction, however the inevitible failure of the current projects ironically will limit the chances of a future project going forward that would likely be much more economical. Bellefonte 1&2 might proceede, but I'm not sure any other project will unless natural gas prices double (which is entirely possible given the historical volatility of this resource and increasingly international markets which are priced much higher than domestic markets).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10911751.post-20159005801587370632013-02-27T09:56:40.063-05:002013-02-27T09:56:40.063-05:00Getting some of the AP1000's built is really t...Getting some of the AP1000's built is really the key. First at Sanmen and Haiyang in China, then Vogtle and Summer. If all goes well, then I think confidence will increase dramatically.SteveK9noreply@blogger.com