Nuclear power, an energy with future and a key in the energy transition according to Citi’s report
According to a recent Citi GPS (Global Perspectives & Solutions)’s report, nuclear power will reaffirm its role in the energy transition as a manageable and low-carbon source of electricity. Advanced fusion and fission, including Small Modular Reactors (SMR) and Advanced Reactors (AR) will shape its future
"Nuclear power, one of the massive sources of electricity with low carbon emissions throughout its whole life cycle, will grow exponentially in different parts of the world and different designs will be prioritized and developed", claim the authors of the "Future of Nuclear Energy in a Low-Carbon Environment” report. This growth would be driven by potential advances in new technologies, which become scalable and marketable.
Nuclear power has the potential to prevent the emission of 63 Gt of CO2 by 2050
"The fight against climate change and the importance of low-carbon sources of electricity generation should inevitably secure a market share for nuclear power". Those responsible for the Citi GPS study calculate that nuclear could avoid the emission of 63 Gt of CO2 by 2050.
New technologies, a fundamental agent
The promising future of nuclear power, according to the report, lies to a large extent in new technologies, which are being developed to achieve greater energy efficiency and greater safety of use. The large-scale construction of conventional nuclear power plants will continue to advance, although it will give way to new generation reactors.
The technologies that will be part of the future of nuclear power are advanced fission, including Small Modular Reactors (SMR) and Advanced Reactors (AR), as well as fusion. With this, nuclear energy ensures a fundamental role in the era of energy transition and the broader combination as a source of generation free of polluting emissions.
Both advanced fission and nuclear fusion are prepared to contribute to global net-zero emissions commitments
The report anticipates that both SMRs and advanced fission reactors will be commercialized sooner worldwide (except for Russia and China) than fusion power. In fact, most likely, claim its authors, is that reactors based on fusion energy will begin to be commercialized in the middle or end of the next decade.
They emphasize that one of the most interesting factors of this technology is the space it occupies. According to the report, they require approximately 7 square kilometres for every 1,000 MW of installed capacity.
“Nuclear power plants have some of the smallest land footprint requirements of all low carbon power sources. Solar and wind farms require a much larger space”
In addition, the document ensures that, with technological advances and the development of Small Modular Reactors, this figure could be reduced much more in the case that most of the SMRs were underground or in water.
On the other hand, those responsible for the report detect a positive change in the perception of nuclear energy by public opinion, something that, along with other factors intrinsic to other sources of generation, are favouring positive progress for nuclear as a source of energy.
