Source: Unsplash/Viktor Kiryanov.
Nuclear power is a credible source of abundant zero-emissions electricity, but it would take 20 years to commence operations from a standing start in Australia.
The battle lines have been drawn over Australia’s energy future.
With the nation committed to net zero emissions by 2050, the Albanese Labor government is committed to renewables. The Coalition wants nuclear.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton’s vision for meeting Australia’s energy needs would include large-scale nuclear power plants and small modular reactors, a technology that is not yet proven, but which Coalition shadow Minister for Energy Ted O’Brien says could be “up and running within a 10-year period”.
While nuclear power might experience a resurgence globally and eventually have a role in Australia, right now, no matter how much intent there might be to activate a nuclear power industry, it is difficult to envision before the mid-2040s.
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