OK, let’s address some of the misinformed assertions in the Yahoo article by Senior Editor Mike Bebernes
1. “The next generation of reactors, heralded as a game changer by supporters, still haven’t been proven in the real world.” – Is the “real world” just the United States? What about Russia and China? From the excellent blog published in June 2021:
“In December 2019, the Akademik Lomonosov, the world’s first floating commercial SMR, was connected to the grid and is supplying power to the remote Chaun-Bilibino network in Russia’s Far East. Rosatom announced in December 2020 that the first commercial RITM-200 50 MWe reactor, an evolution of the KLC-40C and currently used in Russia’s newest icebreakers, will be constructed in the Republic of Sakha (also known as Yakutia) in Siberia. Site work will begin this year and operation is targeted for 2028.
Final the SVBR-100, a lead-bismuth reactor design based on reactors that were used on Russian submarines, is planned for demonstration at the Dimitrovgrad site. AKME-engineering, a 50/50 joint venture between Rosatom and Siberian energy company Irkutskenergo, obtained a site license for the project.
For China, the speedy development of fourth generation reactors has been a key part of China’s last two five-year plans to deploy within China and to emerging countries. China’s progress in demonstrating advanced reactor technologies is best marked by the HTR-PM, featuring two 100 MWe high temperature pebble bed reactors under construction at the Shidao Bay NPP. The HTR-PM began hot functional testing in January 2021 and is scheduled to come online later in 2021. The plant is a scaled-up version of the HTR-10, a 10 MWt prototype reactor at Tsinghua University which has been in operation since 2003. Eighteen additional HTR-PM units are proposed for the Shidao Bay site.
China is also proposing a scaled-up version of the plant, the HTR-PM600, with a single large turbine rated at 650 MWe driven by six HTR-PM reactor units. China is also in the process of demonstrating small LWRs and China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) is building the ACP-100, a 125 MWe SMR, at the Changjiang NPP which is targeted for operation in 2026. The ACP-100 is designed for a variety of applications such as thermal unit replacement, urban district heating, marine applications, and on military bases. The 200 MWe NHR-II is another LWR SMR in development and is being sited in the Hebei province in northern China to provide district heating as well as industrial steam.
Another excellent review of the world inventory for advanced nuclear reactor projects can be found here.
2. “Skeptics say it could take decades before they make a real difference in the global energy grid — too long if the worst outcomes of climate change are to be avoided” How is a “real difference” defined? Are other clean energy sources on a track to make a real difference? How far away is affordable storage at scale to balance the intermittent generation of renewable power? The U.S. is on track to deploy an advanced reactor at a military base by 2027, not decades.
3. “A major ramp-up in nuclear technologies isn’t economically feasible” Based on what business case or data? Sure would like to get the cite for that assertion other than a skeptic’s opinion.
4. “There’s no way to guarantee that nuclear plants will be safe” There is no guarantee that any energy source will be safe. Advanced reactor technology is being engineered with innovative cooling methods and stable fuels. Just research it. We could go on, but you get the picture.
