World Nuclear Electricit​y Generation Down 5 Percent Since 2006

Background:

Nuclear power is on the decline worldwide, and is expected

to continue to decline in importance for at least the next

few decades. This week's report from the Earth Policy

Institute attempts to quantify that decline using figures

from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) --

whose

principal mission is to promote the expansion of

nuclear

power.

The overall trend is unmistakable, but some of the figures

provided by the IAEA are rather misleading. For example,

there is talk of "new additions" of nuclear capacity in

Canada -- but in fact there have been no new reactors

ordered in Canada since before the Three Mile Island

accident in 1979. In recent years, two of Canada's four

Pickering A reactors have been permanently retired and

two of the four Bruce A reactors were shut down for

refurbishment. Those Bruce reactors have now been

restarted, and apparently IAEA considers the restart of

the two reactors as "new additions" to nuclear capacity

in Canada! Meanwhile, the Gentilly-2 reactor is being

permanently retired in Quebec, and the four Pickering B

reactors in Ontario are slated for retirement in 2020.

Out of five new reactors that were "committed" in Canada

a few years ago, three of them have been cancelled

completely (two at Bruce and one at Clarington) and

the

others (at Darlington) have been indefinitely postponed

because of

the unaffordable price tags. Whether they

will ever be

built remains to be seen.

Gordon Edwards.

World Nuclear Electricity Generation For further information on the prospects for nuclear energy, see “Fukushima Meltdown Hastens Decline of Nuclear Power,” at www.earth-policy.org.