Renewables soar while nuclear continues to struggle

For the first time ever, renewable sources (excluding hydropower) generated more power than nuclear plants in 2019. This was a conclusion of the 2020 World Nuclear Industry Status Report, released today. The report looks at the significant and disturbing impacts of COVID-19 on operational safety; the escalating costs and expanded timelines of Small Modular Reactors, including US-based NuScale whose startup predictions now stretch to 2030 but will likely see further delays; and covers nuclear construction in the Middle East, driven by politics and “prestige” rather than economics. Given the pattern of outages and shutdowns, lead author, Mycle Schneider called nuclear power “the most intermittent electricity generation source I have found so far,” during the report’s live rollout.