Nuclear power in decline

Nuclear power and wind/solar are the two main contenders for a fossil fuel free energy future. My previous blog post focused on the problems with wind/solar. It now seems that nuclear power is also in serious trouble. Earlier this year (2017) as I covered in this post, Westinghouse filed for bankruptcy due to cost overruns on their AP1000 nuclear reactors. Now the other shoe has dropped with the cancellation of two AP1000 projects as covered by this article in climate news network and IEEE Spectrum. Other new reactor projects around the world are also in trouble. These articles make the point that the nascent nuclear revival based on improved designs is petering out. New nuclear designs for the future also seem to be in trouble as discussed in this article in climate news network.

Nuclear power has always had significant political opposition, but the engineering complexity now seems to be a more significant problem.

With the growing awareness of the limits of wind/solar and the imminent demise of nuclear power, there is a need to try new approaches like StratoSolar. As I have repeatedly stated over the years, StratoSolar viability is quick and cheap to demonstrate. Its claim to be a complete replacement for fossil fuels is based on solid and well proven technologies. Its not based on magical power, perpetual motion or unproven basic science research.

It is becoming increasingly obvious that the leading contenders of wind/solar and nuclear are proving more and more problematic as their deployments increasingly expose their weaknesses. Its time to examine alternative options like StratoSolar

​By Edmund Kelly