The US Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) says that just as nuclear energy helped reduce US dependence on oil for electricity generation in the 1970s and 1980s, it can also help reduce current overdependence on natural gas.
John Kane, NEI’s senior vice-president for governmental affairs, made the comment on 24th January 2005 as part of his remarks before the US Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s conference on natural gas supply and demand.
Mr Kane said that high prices for natural gas and price volatility over the past four years have been caused partly by an “unsustainable demand for natural gas in the electric generation sector”. He said that more than 90% of all new electricity-generating capacity added in the US over the past 10 years is fueled by natural gas.
But he said that just as nuclear played a role in reducing US dependence on oil during the first oil crisis in 1973 until the construction of new nuclear power plants and the delivery of base load “24-by-7” (around the clock) power generation, it can do so again to help reduce US overdependence on natural gas over the next 10 to 20 years.
He said that in the decades following the oil crisis, oil’s share of domestic US electricity production decreased from approximately 20% to its current share of 3%, while nuclear’s share increased from less than 5% to 20% today.
Mr Kane also said the US needs to follow the leads now taken by Europe and Asia towards the construction of new nuclear capacity. He pointed to the need for a government “kick start” to the new build and for the development of a public-private partnership. He said: “The US faces a critical need for investment in emission-free, next generation nuclear power plants to relieve pressure on natural gas supply, to help preserve fuel and technology diversity, to help make our air cleaner and to strengthen US energy security.”
Mr Kane’s remarks came as the NEI estimated that US nuclear enjoyed a record-setting 2004 through the production of approximately 786.5 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity – compared to 764 TWh in 2003 and a previous record of 780 TWh in 2002 [see News No. 135, 21st June 2004].
NEI executive vice-president Angie Howard announced the preliminary statistics during a presentation at a US Energy Association conference, “The State of the Energy Industry 2005”, held in Washington DC on 18th January 2005.
Ms Howard said: “Output from US nuclear plants has increased dramatically over the last 10 years. The increase in production between 1993 and 2003 is equivalent to the output from 18 new 1,000-megawatt power plants operating at 90% capacity factor. Currently, the NEI estimates that the industry will have a record-breaking year once the 2004 figures are finalised.”
