Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Germany will coordinate with neighbours on nuclear exit, meanwhile 'downunder' will Aussies go nuclear?
Germany will coordinate with neighbours on nuclear exit, meanwhile 'downunder' will Aussies go nuclear?(HD).German Economy Minister Philipp Roesler called Tuesday for close coordination with the country's neighbours on its nuclear energy exit over the next decade, including on expanding its electricity grid. Germany's "energy transition", which is to see the country shutter its nuclear reactors by 2022 and ramp up the use of renewable power sources, "will not work without a European perspective," Roesler told a conference. "Our neighbours, France, Poland, find it interesting what we are doing, to put it politely," he said, "but many of them are suffering the consequences without seeing the benefits. "It makes sense to work together, for example on (electricity) grids," he added.
Germany decided one year ago in the wake of Japan's disaster at its Fukushima nuclear plant to speed up its withdrawal from nuclear power -- a decision that requires it to revamp its energy strategy. In recent weeks, Chancellor Angela Merkel's government has come in for criticism for what industry officials say is a cripplingly slow approach to the transition, potentially threatening the energy supply in Europe's top economy. Roesler, who is also vice chancellor, defended Berlin's efforts, noting that the "energy transition is a project of historic proportions". "It should be clear to everyone that this will not happen in a year," he said, adding that "a lot has been decided in recent months". Australia to Go Nuclear by 2030, Says Expert.Australia will become a primary user of advanced nuclear technology, says University of Adelaide scientist Professor Barry Brook, if the country is serious about cutting carbon emissions. Professor Brook, Director of Climate Science at the University of Adelaide’s Environment Institute, says Australia will eventually turn to nuclear power to meet our sustainable energy needs — and when we do, we will choose to focus on next-generation nuclear technology that provides major safety, waste, and cost benefits over conventional nuclear power.Speaking on the eve of World Environment Day (5 June), Professor Brook says: “Coal, oil, and natural gas are the main cause of recent global warming, and these fossil fuels must be completely replaced with clean sustainable energy sources in the coming decades if serious climate change impacts are to be avoided. “One particularly attractive sustainable nuclear technology for Australia is the Integral Fast Reactor (IFR). Although the scientific community has known about the benefits of IFR-type designs for many years, there are currently none in commercial operation because the energy utilities are typically too risk averse to ‘bet on’ new technologies. This is a wasted opportunity for Australia and for the rest of the world. “Integral Fast Reactors are much more efficient at extracting energy from uranium, can use existing nuclear waste for fuel, produce far smaller volumes of waste that does not require long-term geological isolation, and can be operated at low cost and high reliability. They are also inherently safer than past nuclear reactors due to passive systems based on the laws of physics,” Professor Brook says.Hmmmm.....At least in Australia they realize that the 'green Energy' will be too expensive to be competitive.Not mentioning the affordability for part of the population.Read the full story here.
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