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I do not believe that the claimed grid problems cannot be overcome. If it is really a problem, connect nuclear reactors to a separate grid for the railway and h

by aklfHa 2y ago

I do not believe that the claimed grid problems cannot be overcome. If it is really a problem, connect nuclear reactors to a separate grid for the railway and heavy industry. In Germany, the Energiewende has been an expensive failure that led to astronomical electricity prices that no one can afford. China will out-compete us yet again with their new pebble bed reactors.

pfdietz 2y ago
The Energiewende was expensive because it supported PV over 2009-2012 when it was much more expensive than today. The Energiewende was an enormous success, because that success was instrumental in providing demand that drove PV manufacture down an accelerating experience curve. PV is now much MUCH cheaper than it was then and this impetus is a big reason why. Nuclear in China is sputtering compared to their renewable rollout.
cauch 2y ago
The electricity prices argument is very simplistic. What drive electricity prices is very complicated, and sometimes misleading (in France, the low electricity price is a huge mistake, they are not collecting enough money for the medium and long term support of their infrastructure), and Germany is not worst than other country, even some with nuclear (Belgium, UK). Sure, the Energiewende was a failure. It does not mean that 1) there is only one way to transition outside of nuclear (or that there is only one way to do nuclear: similarly pointing at the failure of France is not a good argument to reject nuclear pathways), 2) the situation has evolved and the advantages / disadvantages of the different generations are still the same. I don't agree with everything in the article, but I also keep seeing pro-nuclear people having very very simplistic view on the situation. I prefer a lot people who are able to recognize the pro and the cons of all generation, without showing that they will minimize strongly the real facts that don't support what they want to hear. Nowadays in the energy sector, it is very very very clear that nuclear is, intrinsically, not competitive (not because of regulations, not because of ideology, just because it's an extremely complex enterprise). As long as the pro-nuclears continue to find bad excuses, I will agree that they are not reliable.

by aklfHa 2y ago

pfdietz 2y ago

The Energiewende was expensive because it supported PV over 2009-2012 when it was much more expensive than today. The Energiewende was an enormous success, because that success was instrumental in providing demand that drove PV manufacture down an accelerating experience curve. PV is now much MUCH cheaper than it was then and this impetus is a big reason why. Nuclear in China is sputtering compared to their renewable rollout.

cauch 2y ago

The electricity prices argument is very simplistic. What drive electricity prices is very complicated, and sometimes misleading (in France, the low electricity price is a huge mistake, they are not collecting enough money for the medium and long term support of their infrastructure), and Germany is not worst than other country, even some with nuclear (Belgium, UK). Sure, the Energiewende was a failure. It does not mean that 1) there is only one way to transition outside of nuclear (or that there is only one way to do nuclear: similarly pointing at the failure of France is not a good argument to reject nuclear pathways), 2) the situation has evolved and the advantages / disadvantages of the different generations are still the same. I don't agree with everything in the article, but I also keep seeing pro-nuclear people having very very simplistic view on the situation. I prefer a lot people who are able to recognize the pro and the cons of all generation, without showing that they will minimize strongly the real facts that don't support what they want to hear. Nowadays in the energy sector, it is very very very clear that nuclear is, intrinsically, not competitive (not because of regulations, not because of ideology, just because it's an extremely complex enterprise). As long as the pro-nuclears continue to find bad excuses, I will agree that they are not reliable.