Global Warming and the Future of Nuclear Power

Small and micro reactors

While most of the attention is on traditional nuclear plants, uranium use is not limited to traditional reactors, as Klenda of Ur-Energy pointed out: “By the middle of this decade, we are going to see a massive number of small nuclear reactors providing baseload electricity to several cities. Beyond that, there are also the micro-reactors, which are fueling the local navies in the U.S. and the other world powers, and which are going to be critical for remote locations.”

Small nuclear reactors, or SMRs, offer capacities of less than 300 MW, versus the traditional 1GW to 1.75 GW reactors. According to the World Nuclear Association, these SMR designs can also be used in a wider range of applications, like the floating modular unit that entered operations in Pevek (Russia), which provides water desalination as well as electricity.

Curyer of NexGen Energy developed on this issue: “SMRs can be a real catalyst for economic development. Putting these in some parts of Africa, where often you do not have reliable power at night, would massively improve the standard of living.”

Addressing waste management

The ability of nuclear to continue developing will be determined by countries’ energy policies, which in turn will be dictated by a number of factors. Among the external factors are global warming and the availability and efficiency of alternative sources of power. A key internal factor will be the nuclear sector’s ability to assure adequate nuclear waste management and dependable operational safety, certainly avoiding high-profile disasters such as Chernobyl or Fukushima.

In terms of waste management, volumes are small when compared to other power generation alternatives like coal, oil and gas, said Cobb of the World Nuclear Association: “The entire fuel requirements of a nuclear reactor can be stored in a fuel pool on site for the lifetime of that reactor, which could be 60 years or more, or it can be moved to dry cask storage. It is possible to reprocess nuclear fuel and recycle it as mixed oxide (MOX) fuel. For fuel destined for disposal, the first geological repositories are now under construction.”

At a time of low uranium prices, certain players have seen opportunity in the environmental management aspect of the fuel cycle. US uranium producer Energy Fuels (TSE: EFR) has expanded its business into the processing of radioactive residues to produce new uranium for nuclear reactors, including spillage of ores containing uranium, uranium residues from water treatment plants, or residues left over by process plants that uranium producers do not have the license to deal with. Mark Chalmers, president and CEO of Energy Fuels, stated: “Over the past 20 years, we have recycled about 6 million lb of uranium, the equivalent of 12-13 reactor-years of fuel. We are the only company in the US that can offer this solution and we plan to take the same model to the rare earths space, which confronts the same health, safety and environmental issues.”

Reputation will be a key factor promoting or impeding new nuclear generation development, and industry executives in the uranium space are convinced that this pandemic has shown the key role nuclear should continue to have in the upcoming decades. In the words of Tim Gabruch, VP commercial at Denison Mines (TSE: DML): “More people are recognizing the key role that nuclear energy must play as part of the energy mix needed to fight climate change. During the pandemic, the importance of nuclear power has been further highlighted, as nuclear power operators have kept their promise to deliver clean, reliable baseload power to supply critical infrastructure, including hospitals, while also providing stable high value jobs.”