Nuclear energy

Daniel H. Karney

Chapter 89 in Elgar Encyclopedia of Energy Economics, 2025, pp 352-354 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Nuclear energy produces electricity indirectly via heat from nuclear fission. Nuclear-powered electric generating units (EGUs) are economically characterized by having low variable costs and high fixed costs compared to conventional fossil-fuel-fired EGUs. This means nuclear-powered EGUs are always dispatched to generate electricity when available in the short run, but these same units may not be able to cover their total costs in the long run. As of 2022, most of the nuclear power plants worldwide were more than 30 years old, as the building of new plants peaked in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The demand for new nuclear power plants is low due to safety concerns along with economic competition from other electricity generation technologies. Nuclear energy does not emit any direct greenhouse gas emissions, and thus low-emission nuclear-powered EGUs can support the energy transition to large-scale deployment of renewable wind and solar electricity generation capacity.

Keywords: Nuclear Energy; Nuclear Fission; Power Reactors; Levelized Cost; Nuclear Safety; Energy Transition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781035310364
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