Letter from the Editor
Breakbulk & Project Cargo
Executive Editor : Mark Szakonyi 202.872.1234 , mark . szakonyi @ spglobal . com
“ Nuclear is one of the few options that can reliably deliver at this scale .”
The nuclear option
By Janet Nodar
A commitment to meeting climate goals even as energy demand escalates is supercharging the outlook for nuclear power as a clean and reliable energy source .
To reach net zero emissions by 2050 and keep up with projected demand , the US will need to build between 700 GW and 900 GW of new zero-carbon baseload power generation , according to a September report from the Department of Energy ’ s ( DOE ) Office of Nuclear Energy .
AI and high-performance computing data centers , which need reliable energy 24 / 7 , could increase total power demand in the US by as much as 20 % through 2034 alone , the report said .
“ Nuclear is one of the few options that can reliably deliver [ clean energy ] at this scale ,” the report said .
The data centers necessary to power AI gobble up enormous amounts of electrical power , much of which is currently generated by coal and oil , according to Mason Lester , principal research analyst at S & P Global Commodity Insights . S & P Global is the parent company of the Journal of Commerce .
The DOE is providing substantial funding for extending and restarting existing nuclear operations and supporting the development of advanced nuclear or small modular reactors ( SMRs ). Both developments would boost project cargo logistics demand .
Managing transport related to refurbishing existing nuclear reactors is not unusual in project logistics , but it is likely to increase in importance as the emphasis shifts from retiring reactors to continuing or even restarting operations . The existing stock of reactors is aging , and many will need significant refurbishment during the 2030s if the goal is to extend their life to 80 years , Lester said .
Technology giant Microsoft plans to eventually buy power from what is now a retired unit of Constellation Energy ’ s nuclear facility at Three Mile Island . Bringing the facility back to life could cost as much as $ 1.6 billion , according to Politico subsidiary E & E News .
In addition , government and private investors are pouring massive amounts of funding at SMR startups . Amazon , for example , is investing $ 500 million in several development projects , and the DOE has awarded advanced nuclear power developer Terra- Power almost $ 2 billion for the Natrium SMR project . Bill Gates , a co-founder of TerraPower , has also invested some $ 1 billion in TerraPower , according to reports from E & E News .
Four SMRs are currently in development at the Darlington site in Ontario , Canada , but will not be online until at least 2028 , or “ more likely 2030 ,” Lester said . These are test projects , with developers “ tweaking as they go ,” he explained .
The eventual goal is to modularize SMRs , which require the same components as traditional nuclear reactors but on a smaller scale , Lester added .
Whether this flush of nuclear enthusiasm will hold depends on whether SMRs can be built quickly and efficiently , Lester said .
“ There is a lot of money being thrown at nuclear design companies who have never built a reactor but have a design on paper ,” he said . If pilot projects are successful , utilities and other power consumers will be deeply interested , “ but it ’ s a matter of getting these first three or four going in North America .”
email : janet . nodar @ spglobal . com
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