Japan considers new nuclear reactors

Investment Analysis Clubs Macro Economic Trends and Risks
1

The proximate cause of the nuclear disaster was the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami natural disaster that occurred on 11 March 2011 and was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in Japan. The earthquake triggered a powerful tsunami, with 13–14 meter high waves... Wikipedia

Of course the poorly chosen site of the nuclear power plant exacerbated the problems.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/japan-considering-developmen…

SCI-TECH News

Updated Aug. 24, 2022 10:27 a.m. ADT

Japan considering development of new nuclear reactors

TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Wednesday instructed his government to consider developing safer, smaller nuclear reactors, signaling a renewed emphasis on nuclear energy years after many of the country’s plants were shut down.
Kishida made the comment at a “green transformation” conference on bolstering the country’s efforts to curb emissions of greenhouse gases. Japan has pledged to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

5 Likes
2

Update

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/threats-of-blackouts-drive-japan…

INTERNATIONAL 15h ago

Threats of blackouts drive Japan to embrace nuclear again

Stephen Stapczynski and David Stringer, Bloomberg News

Discussion on increased demand for Uranium with the CEO of Cameco as several nations are looking at restarting nuclear power or even nations that have never had nuclear to build for clean energy as well as to avoid the surging cost and political implications of burning fossil fuels.

Cameco is in the process of reopening mines that were closed when market demand was too low some years back. Market discipline … who knew?

Tim

1 Like
3

I don´t think that the Germans will change their mind and follow the same path.
Not too soon in anyway.

4

clubbervision6: I don´t think that the Germans will change their mind and follow the same path.
Not too soon in anyway.

Really? Perhaps Putin should have waited until they closed those last three Eh!

Tim

https://reason.com/2022/08/16/germany-keeping-three-nuclear-…

NUCLEAR POWER

In a Belated Outburst of Rationality, Germany Decides To Keep Three Nuclear Plants Open

Leaving the country dependent on Russian natural gas was not too smart.

RONALD BAILEY | 8.16.2022 4:45 PM

Russia has dramatically cut its exports of natural gas to Germany as punishment for the country’s support of Ukraine in its war against the Russian invasion. Germany was getting 55 percent of its natural gas from Russia before the war. In the meantime, Germany has been shutting down perfectly good nuclear reactors that would have made the country less dependent upon the whims of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Before 2010, Germany had 17 operating nuclear power plants. However, in a panicked over-reaction to the Fukushima nuclear meltdowns in 2011, the German government decided to close all of them down.

2 Likes
5

NUCLEAR POWER
In a Belated Outburst of Rationality, Germany Decides To Keep Three Nuclear Plants Open

That is what the Wall Street Journal reported, but the German government was quick to deny the story.
They are apparently performing some kind of “stress test” to provide them the data to make a final decision.

https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/german-minister-rule…

BERLIN, Aug 21 (Reuters) - German Economy Minister Robert Habeck ruled out on Sunday extending the lifespan of the country’s three remaining nuclear power plants in order to save gas, saying it would save at most 2 percent of gas use.

These savings were not sufficient to be worth reopening the debate about the exit from nuclear energy given the consensus on the topic, he said during a discussion with citizens at the government’s open-door day.

So we will not know for several more days if Germany will keep the nuclear plants running or not. My concern is if they decide to keep the plants running, has anyone ordered the fuel? The three remaining plants will presumably be close to the end of fuel life, and will need some fresh enriched uranium to keep going into next year. If they haven’t ordered the fuel yet, it may not make much difference what the decision is.

  • Pete
2 Likes
6

Really? Perhaps Putin should have waited until they closed those last three Eh!

Tim

I havent´t read anything about this in the German newspapers.
They say that good news travel fast, though.

7

These savings were not sufficient to be worth reopening the debate about the exit from nuclear energy given the consensus on the topic, he said during a discussion with citizens at the government’s open-door day.
--------------------------------

So we will not know for several more days if Germany will keep the nuclear plants running or not.

Yoy know, every time I start to feel sorry for the Germans … stuff like that … and a new one that just popped up makes me cringe and shake my head in wonder. Perhaps a really cold winter with the power shut off would wake them up to the new reality?

The politicians and Greenies appear to be tripping over each other to find stupid reasons to not do what is needed to fix the mess?

Tim

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/n-b-nuclear-power-could-090000131…

CBC

N.B.'s nuclear power could complicate Belledune’s hydrogen sales

Thu, August 25, 2022 at 6:00 a.m.

Nuclear energy’s role in powering a proposed “green hydrogen” plant in northern New Brunswick could make sales from the facility to Germany more difficult.

Port of Belledune CEO Denis Caron acknowledged to reporters Wednesday that N.B. Power’s use of nuclear energy could be a deal-breaker for German buyers of hydrogen.

“It could be, yes,” he said.

The port signed an agreement this week with the German port of Wilhelmshaven that Caron hopes will pave the way for sales of hydrogen to Europe.

…

The proposed hydrogen plant in Belledune would produce what Caron calls “green” hydrogen, powered, at least initially, by electricity from the provincial grid – including from N.B. Power’s Point Lepreau nuclear station.

“From a German perspective, this is really unacceptable,” says Constantin Zerger of Environment Action Germany.

4 Likes