Nuclear energy: fixing the finance

Syllabus: GS-I, Subject: Geography, Topic: Industry – World and India, Issue: Nuclear Power plants

Context: Brussels hosted the first-ever Nuclear Energy Summit.

Significance of Nuclear power plants

• Emits four times less carbon than solar farms and other renewables.
• Offers uninterrupted energy supply regardless of geographical constraints.
• Lower operating costs, smaller land footprint, and longer life cycles compared to other renewable sources.
• Nuclear technology advancements (Small Modular Reactors) aim to mitigate nuclear-related risks.

Concerns

• Multilateral Development Banks and private investors have not significantly financed nuclear projects.
• Weaponization risk, radiation leaks, regulation, high upfront costs, and long project overruns hinder nuclear energy adoption in India.

The way ahead:

• Cooperative funding models in France, South Korea and the U.K. involve investors raising credit from the market and taking responsibility for project delivery.
• Finland’s ‘Mankala’ model, where multiple private companies jointly own energy producers, has successfully funded large power plants since the 1970s.

Source: The Hindu