Part 2 of 2 Parts (Please read Part 1 first)
Almost ninety percent of the world’s new reactors in the past five years have been constructed on Chinese or Russian designs, according to the International Energy Agency. Those two countries also control more than sixty percent of the planet’s converted uranium required for nuclear power production.
There have been lingering effects of the pandemic and Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Sung-Mi Kim is an international security researcher. He wrote in a recent analysis for Chatham House that “domestic economic slowdowns and international sanctions will be a stress test for the export potential of Russia and China.”
The U.S. is still the only country in the world that has more operational power plants than France. The U.S. could speed up research and development on rival technology, and potentially yield room for cooperation.
However, it could also imply more intense competition between Western allies. The U.S. Energy Secretary announced the selection of Westinghouse to build the Polish nuclear plant last month. She said that it was “a clear message to Russia.” The Polish project will sustain or create more than one hundred thousand jobs for U.S. workers.
France earned its reputation as a leading nuclear energy nation amid the oil crisis in the 1970s. The oil crisis prompted a wave of new reactor construction according to Alexandre Danthine who is a senior associate with Aurora Energy Research.
However, as the existing nuclear power plants kept producing sufficient amounts of cheap electricity, interest in constructing new nuclear power reactors faded. Technological expertise disappeared as nuclear workers retired or moved abroad. The Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan raised questions over whether any new nuclear plants would ever be built in France.
The French nuclear industry steady decline has only been reversed over the past few years. Macron began pushing nuclear power as a way for Europe to achieve energy independence without having to increase carbon emissions.
Macron has acknowledged that the French industry has “fallen behind.” However, he has defended its ability to recover. He has been striking deals on nuclear energy cooperation in recent months with countries including India and Britain.
Macron is scheduled to attends a nuclear energy session on Wednesday. He will be accompanied by four French cabinet members and several executives from the country’s major nuclear energy firms and its public regulator.
A French official said Monday that one area where France anticipates possible mutual interests is the development of small modular reactors (SMRs). SMRs produce less energy than traditional nuclear power plants but are advertised as cheaper, safer and quicker to produce at large scale.
That could help counter some of the key criticism of nuclear energy. The construction of large nuclear power plants is expensive and can take decades while other renewable energy sources such as wind and solar can be operational in months or years and are increasingly cheap.
Critics often criticize France’s large pressurized water reactors or EPRs which are touted as offering advances in safety and efficiency over conventional reactors while producing less waste. Unfortunate, the first such plant under construction in France has repeatedly been delayed since construction began in 2007.
France is still betting on EPRs. It intends to build at least six more by 2050. However, the SMRs appear to be the most promising field of international growth.
Countries around the world are still racing to develop designs. Russia’s floating Akademik Lomonosov nuclear power plant already began operation in 2020.
A Franco-U.S. cooperation would not be without precedent. France’s nuclear expansion was largely possible because France struck a deal to utilize U.S. technology.