4 ms·

All the issues of big nuclear but none of the economies of scale.

• JoeAltmaier 6y ago
  That's not fair. They have nearly none of the big-nuclear issues. And they have a different scaling pattern - they can be spot-built to shore up infrastructure. Remote locations, issues with reliable power, economic realities could make them quite desirable at the right place and time.
  • Schiendelman 6y ago
    The big nuclear issue is cost. These are much more expensive than renewables, and that delta is just rising.
    • JoeAltmaier 6y ago
      No reason why these shouldn't get cheaper too. And the reliability area is where these could shine. There are situations where modular nuclear is a clear win.
      • Schiendelman 6y ago
        “No reason why” - there are many reasons, and it’s why they have become more expensive. It’s not clear that nuclear is more reliable than any other similar monetary investment. People like to compare “wind that only blows 40% of the time” with nuclear, but you can build three or more farms for the cost of your single nuclear plant, so it’s not that hard to end up ahead. There’s a great comparison of that in one of the top level comments on this post.