Senator Pete Domenici
The Energy View from Washington
June / July 2004
Volume 2 Number 3
I believe nuclear power in this country stands at the dawn of a renaissance. The ability of nuclear energy to provide clean, reliable, economical electricity is being recognized by more and more citizens.
In the last two months, three consortia of U.S. nuclear power and utility companies have announced their intention to obtain licenses from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that would allow them to build advanced nuclear reactors in the next few years. One consortium wants to build in Alabama and another in Virginia. The third has not identified a site.
In addition, three U.S. utilities—€”Dominion, Exelon and Entergy—€”have applied to the NRC for early site permits that allow utilities to pre-approve sites for construction of nuclear power plant in coming years. Two recent studies urge an expanded global investment in nuclear power as a solution to greenhouse gases.
A study led by scientists at MIT last summer concluded that nuclear power must play a strong role if the global community hopes to achieve long-term gains in the control of carbon dioxide emissions. Two months ago, the European Economic and Social Committee concluded that nuclear energy has a vital role in helping the EU address climate change and provide enough affordable energy to sustain economic growth.
These are exciting events that suggest a renewed public trust and financial investment in our nuclear future.
I believe we need to achieve five things if we are to make this nuclear renaissance a reality here in the United States. Those five achievements are: (1) a predictable liability indemnification structure, (2) the construction of new plants, (3) an advanced reactor program that explores ways to reduce waste and improve both efficiency and resistance to proliferation, (4) better waste management strategies and (5) a better trained nuclear workforce.
I've been working on three of those five areas for years through the Senate appropriations process. I have helped create and fund federal research programs to study better waste management strategies. I believe those programs need even more funding. I strongly believe in our potential to dramatically reduce both the volume and toxicity of nuclear waste. If we do, I think we increase both the safety and political viability of any future waste repositories like we are evaluating for Yucca Mountain.
I have also helped create and fund federal programs to encourage workforce training. I think the nuclear engineering field has been sadly neglected in recent years. Too many of our young people have chosen other engineering specialties in recent years because they have been discouraged by the future they saw for nuclear energy. Now that we are seeing renewed public interest and investment, we must move quickly to ensure a highly skilled workforce both in research and operations.
In the last three years, I have also appropriated funding for the NP2010 program, which is an umbrella program for several DOE thrusts aimed at encouraging the start of construction of new nuclear plants in this country by 2010.
The three consortia who have announced plans to build nuclear reactors are seeking DOE funding for construction and operating licenses through one of the NP2010 programs. The utility companies that have filed for early site permitting are receiving DOE funding through another NP2010 program. These programs help utility companies manage the steep costs of engineering and certifying a new advanced nuclear reactor.
In addition, I would like to see production tax credits for nuclear energy similar to the ones we have now for wind, solar and geothermal energy. These tax credits would help utility companies offset the expense of generating the low-emission nuclear power I believe our society will find increasingly desirable in the coming years. They would go a long way toward placing nuclear power on a level playing field with other low emission sustainable sources of electricity.
Through the energy bill passed by the House and under consideration in the Senate, I am trying to achieve both these tax credits and a long-term liability program. The energy bill addresses this last area by extending the Price-Anderson legislation, which is another critical step in enabling construction of new plants.
The bill also authorizes funding for an advanced reactor program that helps us develop improved reactors that reduce waste, are more efficient and that improve resistance to nuclear proliferation issues, a critically important aspect of nuclear power in today's post 9/11 world. That advanced nuclear reactor would be built at the DOE national laboratory in Idaho. Further, it would explore ways to produce hydrogen from nuclear power plants since nuclear energy may be an ideal resource to provide the energy required for making hydrogen.
While we are moving forward domestically, other industrial countries have also caught the vision. In fact, several countries are well ahead of us. The government in Finland evaluated all their energy options and decided that nuclear was their best choice; they have now contracted for a new advanced plant. Taiwan and China have advanced plants under construction. Japan operates advanced nuclear power plants licensed but never built here and has more under construction. South Africa is working on an innovative new "pebble bed" design for nuclear plants they hope will be cheaper and safer than current designs.
I believe this renaissance will be driven primarily by two events—€”a growing global awareness of greenhouse gases and, domestically, the rising cost of electricity from gas, oil and coal. The cost of these fuels has risen steadily since June 2000. Given our uncertain global market and sustained tight supplies domestically, I do not see an end in sight to these spiraling energy prices.
As oil and gas become less economically available for meeting our energy and transportation needs, we must be ready to transition to other resources to sustain our nation's thirst for energy throughout the next century.
Only three sources of energy in use today have the potential to expand substantially to take up the slack when we are forced to shift from oil and gas.
Those three are: nuclear energy, renewable energy sources, and clean coal. Only these three sources clearly have the potential to meet our needs beyond this century. The Comprehensive Energy Bill encourages strong research and development programs in each of these areas.
I have argued passionately and tirelessly for a comprehensive energy policy that addresses tight supply and rising costs by diversifying our energy supply and increasing energy production. Right now, comprehensive legislation that achieves those goals is stalled in the Senate.
But change doesn't start with politicians and legislative bodies. I have a great respect for change driven by public awareness and market forces. I am delighted to see a nuclear renaissance powered by science, a growing respect for the environment and a global understanding of the kind of energy we need to sustain economic development.
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