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Nuclear Power Crucial to US Energy Needs, Says Industry Executive

Posted on: Friday, 14 March 2008, 06:00 CDT

The development of new nuclear power plants over the next decade will help the US meet its growing demand for electricity with a reliable, carbon-free source of energy, a nuclear industry executive told the US House of Representatives' Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.

Nuclear power plants operating in 31 US states reportedly provide more than 70% of all US electricity that comes from sources that do not emit greenhouse gases or controlled pollutants covered by the Clean Air Act.

Nuclear power plants also account for 54% of voluntary greenhouse gas reductions reported by project type in the electric power sector, under the sector's power partners agreement with the US Department of Energy.

In the US, 17 companies or groups of companies are preparing license applications for as many as 31 new reactors. Five complete or partial applications for combined construction and operating licenses have been filed with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2007.

Alex Flint, the Nuclear Energy Institute's senior vice president of governmental affairs, said: "It is extraordinarily challenging to imagine credible scenarios by which electricity production can double in the coming decades while significantly reducing the emission of greenhouse gases from electricity generation. To do so will take the successful implementation of a wide range of solutions including nuclear power."

Source: Datamonitor

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