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It's due noting that India didn't ignore Thorium, holding 25% of the worlds reserve it saw well in advance that Th232 has a half-life as long as the known unive
by electromagnetic 17y ago
It's due noting that India didn't ignore Thorium, holding 25% of the worlds reserve it saw well in advance that Th232 has a half-life as long as the known universe and gives the country energy independence. With current estimates, India essentially holds as much energy in its thorium reserves as the world has uranium reserves, meaning it itself could sell enough energy to likely run the world for 100 years, or run itself (at present demand) into the next millennium without a concern.
The US is presently worrying about where to find its energy independence, while India has already found its independence for the next 1,000 years.
- sundae79 17y agoSure, except the process still hasn't been made abosultely safe when it comes to thorium.
- Kadin 17y agoNothing is "absolutely safe" -- certainly, fossil fuels aren't. Conventional uranium reactors aren't. They're extremely safe, far beyond what I consider a reasonable cause for the fear that they're treated with, but they are not "absolutely" safe. Frankly I'm not really sure what "absolutely safe" would even mean; even a hydroelectric dam could break, given an earthquake or intentional sabotage. That's not a realistic criteria for any energy source; instead, we should be talking about managing and containing risks.
- Locke1689 17y agoI'm not sure where you got the 25% number, but thorium deposits exist all over the world. In the US, the carolinas are an available source. It's about as common as lead, so i'm not really sure we're predicting any shortages anywhere yet.
- jawad 17y agoThe USGS Minerals Commodity Summary for Thorium indicates that Australia, the US, India, and Norway have 80% of the world's thorium reserve base. PDF warning: http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/thorium/mcs-2009-thori.pdf http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/thorium/mcs...
- Locke1689 17y agoThanks. Interestingly enough it seems that Australia, not India, is the winner in Thorium reserves, both economically exploitable and total. In total, the US and India have equivalent reserves, while India has more economically exploitable.