NEI Nuclear Notes

The Dutch have made a decision: In a radical change of policy, the Netherlands is reducing its targets for renewable energy and slashing the subsidies for wind and solar power. It's also given the green light for the country's first new nuclear power plants for almost 40 years. I’m not sure about this. I’d be inclined to think that the two decisions stand separate from one another – nuclear energy does not have to displace renewable energy sources and in fact, nuclear wind and solar are far better as a trio pursued together as carbon emission reduction agents. For another, The Netherlands is a small country. It’s current nuclear plant, Borssele, generates by itself almost 60 percent of the country’s electricity and will operate until 2034. Coal is the second largest generator, with about 38 percent. That’s the percentage that wind and solar and a second nuclear plant can target. Even more interesting is the reason given to abandon renewables: Wind and solar sub...

It seems a major rethink is underway over nuclear energy in Europe. Sweden , Poland , Italy and Germany have all either reversed their moratoriums/phase-outs or put forward serious proposals to add nuclear generating capacity. Now, it looks like the Netherlands may be about to join the club. The Netherlands has just one reactor —and at 485 megawatts—it generates only about four percent of the country’s electricity. But a new proposal by a holding company representing “six Dutch provinces and various city councils” may be about to change that. The submission will detail plans to construct a nuclear power plant with a maximum capacity of 2,500 megawatts, almost five times the capacity of Borssele 1. ERH hopes to obtain all necessary permits by 2014 and start up the plant in 2019. This new plant could be “one or two Westinghouse AP1000 reactors, an EPR or a BWR” according to the World Nuclear Association. Perhaps, like much of the rest of Europe, the Dutch are thinki...

Here’s what the International Energy Agency has to say about carbon reduction ambitions in the Netherlands: The head of the International Energy Agency urged the Dutch government Monday to expand its nuclear power base, but the country's environment minister said that's not in the energy equation for now. Nobuo Tanaka, the IEA executive director, said the Netherlands will find it tough to reach its target of slashing carbon emissions 30 percent below 1990 levels within the next dozen years without building more nuclear power stations. We’ve made the same argument (a lot) about the most efficacious way to achieve carbon reduction. We do wonder why IEA focused on the Dutch. A look at its Web site shows it does reports (for a price) focused on individual countries and how plans shape up versus goals. IEA seems neutral on energy generators, so it isn’t recommending nuclear because that’s what it always does. Here’s a bit more on where the Dutch are on this issue : ...