World Nuclear Industry Status Report
Encyclopedia
The World Nuclear Industry Status Report is a yearly report that explores the global challenges facing the nuclear power
industry. The reports show that the share of nuclear-generated electricity in the overall global energy production has decreased in the 2000s. Nuclear power now accounts for about 13 percent of the world’s electricity generation and 5.5 percent of the commercial primary energy.
. The foreword is written by Amory Lovins
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According to the report, the international nuclear industry has been unable to stop the slow decline of nuclear energy. The world’s reactor fleet is aging quickly and not enough new units are coming online. As of April 1, 2011, there were 437 nuclear reactors operating in the world, which was seven fewer than in 2002. The Olkiluoto plant has had particular problems:
The report says that the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster
is exacerbating many of the problems that nuclear energy is facing. There is "no obvious sign that the international nuclear industry could eventually turn empirically evident downward trend into a promising future", and the Fukushima nuclear disaster is likely to accelerate the decline. With long lead times of 10 years and more, it will be difficult to maintain, let alone increase, the number of operating nuclear power plants over the next 20 years. Moreover, says the report, it is clear that nuclear power development cannot keep up with the pace of renewable energy commercialization
. For the first time, in 2010 total installed nuclear power capacity in the world (375 gigawatts) fell behind aggregate installed capacity (381 GW) of three specific renewables — wind turbines (193 GW), biomass
and waste-to-energy
plants (65 GW), and solar power (43 GW).
s in operation, under construction and in planning phases throughout the world. A detailed analyses of the economic performance of past and current nuclear projects is also given. The report was commissioned by the German Federal Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation and Reactor Safety.
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-Paris, Greenpeace International and the World Watch Institute, Washington. The second report in 2004 was commissioned by the Greens-EFA Group in the European Parliament.
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
industry. The reports show that the share of nuclear-generated electricity in the overall global energy production has decreased in the 2000s. Nuclear power now accounts for about 13 percent of the world’s electricity generation and 5.5 percent of the commercial primary energy.
2010-11 report
The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2010-2011 is authored by Mycle Schneider, Antony Froggatt, and Steve Thomas and published by the Washington-based Worldwatch InstituteWorldwatch Institute
The Worldwatch Institute is a globally focused environmental research organization based in Washington, D.C. Worldwatch was named as one of the top ten sustainable development research organizations by Globescan Survey of Sustainability Experts.-Mission:...
. The foreword is written by Amory Lovins
Amory Lovins
Amory Bloch Lovins is an American environmental scientist and writer, Chairman and Chief Scientist of the Rocky Mountain Institute. He has worked in the field of energy policy and related areas for four decades...
.
According to the report, the international nuclear industry has been unable to stop the slow decline of nuclear energy. The world’s reactor fleet is aging quickly and not enough new units are coming online. As of April 1, 2011, there were 437 nuclear reactors operating in the world, which was seven fewer than in 2002. The Olkiluoto plant has had particular problems:
The flagship EPR project at Olkiluoto in Finland, managed by the largest nuclear builder in the world, AREVA NP, has turned into a financial fiasco. The project is four years behind schedule and at least 90 percent over budget, reaching a total cost estimate of €5.7 billion ($8.3 billion) or close to €3,500 ($5,000) per kilowatt.
The report says that the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster
Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster
The is a series of equipment failures, nuclear meltdowns, and releases of radioactive materials at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, following the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on 11 March 2011. The plant comprises six separate boiling water reactors originally designed by General Electric ,...
is exacerbating many of the problems that nuclear energy is facing. There is "no obvious sign that the international nuclear industry could eventually turn empirically evident downward trend into a promising future", and the Fukushima nuclear disaster is likely to accelerate the decline. With long lead times of 10 years and more, it will be difficult to maintain, let alone increase, the number of operating nuclear power plants over the next 20 years. Moreover, says the report, it is clear that nuclear power development cannot keep up with the pace of renewable energy commercialization
Renewable energy commercialization
Renewable energy commercialization involves the deployment of three generations of renewable energy technologies dating back more than 100 years. First-generation technologies, which are already mature and economically competitive, include biomass, hydroelectricity, geothermal power and heat...
. For the first time, in 2010 total installed nuclear power capacity in the world (375 gigawatts) fell behind aggregate installed capacity (381 GW) of three specific renewables — wind turbines (193 GW), biomass
Biomass
Biomass, as a renewable energy source, is biological material from living, or recently living organisms. As an energy source, biomass can either be used directly, or converted into other energy products such as biofuel....
and waste-to-energy
Waste-to-energy
Waste-to-energy or energy-from-waste is the process of creating energy in the form of electricity or heat from the incineration of waste source. WtE is a form of energy recovery...
plants (65 GW), and solar power (43 GW).
2009 report
The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2009 presents quantitative and qualitative information on the nuclear power plantNuclear power plant
A nuclear power plant is a thermal power station in which the heat source is one or more nuclear reactors. As in a conventional thermal power station the heat is used to generate steam which drives a steam turbine connected to a generator which produces electricity.Nuclear power plants are usually...
s in operation, under construction and in planning phases throughout the world. A detailed analyses of the economic performance of past and current nuclear projects is also given. The report was commissioned by the German Federal Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation and Reactor Safety.
2008 report
The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2008 focused on the difficulties facing nuclear power throughout the world, with particular reference to Western Europe and Asia.2007 report
The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2007 was commissioned by the Greens-EFA Group in the European ParliamentEuropean Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
.
Earlier reports
The first World Nuclear Industry Status Report was issued in 1992 in a joint publication with WISEWise
-People:* Audrey Wise , United Kingdom politician* Bob Wise , American politician* Brownie Wise , American saleswoman who developed "party plan" marketing*Christopher Wise , American author...
-Paris, Greenpeace International and the World Watch Institute, Washington. The second report in 2004 was commissioned by the Greens-EFA Group in the European Parliament.
See also
- International Atomic Energy AgencyInternational Atomic Energy AgencyThe International Atomic Energy Agency is an international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. The IAEA was established as an autonomous organization on 29 July 1957...
- Nuclear energy policyNuclear energy policyNuclear energy policy is a national and international policy concerning some or all aspects of nuclear energy, such as mining for nuclear fuel, extraction and processing of nuclear fuel from the ore, generating electricity by nuclear power, enriching and storing spent nuclear fuel and nuclear fuel...
- Nuclear renaissanceNuclear renaissanceSince about 2001 the term nuclear renaissance has been used to refer to a possible nuclear power industry revival, driven by rising fossil fuel prices and new concerns about meeting greenhouse gas emission limits. At the same time, various barriers to a nuclear renaissance have been identified...
- Nuclear power in ChinaNuclear power in China, the People's Republic of China has 14 nuclear power reactors spread out over 4 separate sites and 27 under construction. China's National Development and Reform Commission has indicated the intention to raise the percentage of China's electricity produced by nuclear power from the current 1% to...
Further reading
- Mycle Schneider, Steve Thomas, Antony Froggatt, and Doug Koplow. (November 2009, Vol. 65 No. 6). 2009 World Nuclear Industry Status Report Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, pp. 1-19.
- International Atomic Energy AgencyInternational Atomic Energy AgencyThe International Atomic Energy Agency is an international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. The IAEA was established as an autonomous organization on 29 July 1957...
(2008). Nuclear´s Great Expectations: Projections Continue to Rise for Nuclear Power, but Relative Generation Share Declines - Worldwatch InstituteWorldwatch InstituteThe Worldwatch Institute is a globally focused environmental research organization based in Washington, D.C. Worldwatch was named as one of the top ten sustainable development research organizations by Globescan Survey of Sustainability Experts.-Mission:...
(2011). The End of Nuclear.