NuclearPower:KeyFacts
Climatechange
20%oftheUK’scurrentelectricityneedsaremetby
Uraniumminingandtheamountofenergyusedduring
nuclearpower.Francehasanevengreaterreliance
constructionensurethatnuclearpowerleavesasizeable
onitwithafigureof75%andbothIndiaandChina
carbonfootprint.Theindustryonlygenerateselectricity
havemorenewreactorsinproductionthananyother
whichhaslittleimpactonthecarbon-heavytransportsector.
country.
1
Sodespitesomecriticsbrandingnuclear
energyasbeingexpensive,dirtyanddangerous,it’s
certainlyanindustrythat’sontherise.Therefore
whenitcomestofinancialopportunities,thiscould
Safety
beapotentiallylucrativeareatoinvestin.
Two decades on from Chernobyl, concerns over power
plant safety coupled with a risk of direct terrorist attacks still
InJanuary2008,anewgenerationofnuclearpower
persist. These concerns also extend to the large amount of
stationsweregivenformalbackingbytheUK
radioactive waste transported by road, rail and sea.
government.
2
Itisexpectedtheywillbebuilthere
withinthenext10-15yearstoprovidea‘safeand
affordable’energysource.Inlightofthis,could
nuclearenergyeverberegardedasavalidareafor
sociallyresponsibleinvestments?
AtEcclesiastical,webelievethatit’sneverbeenmore
importanttodiscussthisissue.Whatdoyouknow
aboutnuclearpowerandwhat’syouropinion?Here
aresomefactsabouttheindustry.
a73 Therearenow435commercialnuclearpower
reactorsoperatingin30countries.
1
Keyissues
a73 ThelastreactorbuiltintheUKwasin1994and
nonehavebeenbuiltintheUSAsince1977.
a73 Over300nuclearpowerstationsareforecast
tobebuiltoverthenext20years.
3
a73 EDFEnergyissettospend£22bnoverthe
next12yearsonbuilding4nuclearplants
thatcouldpotentiallycreateprofitsforinvestors
incomponents,constructionandnuclear
wasteproviders.
4
Safety
a73 Globaldemandforelectricityisforecast
todoublebetween2000and2030.
5
The sector has an excellent safety record, especially when
a73 The2005NobelPeacePrizewasawarded
compared to the mining industry. Improved technology and
totheInternationalAtomicEnergyAgencyfor
increasingly stringent regulations over emissions have
workingtoensurethatnuclearenergyisused
increased environmental awareness.
forpeacefulpurposes.
6
Climatechange
If the UK government wants to meet its current and future
carbon emission targets, nuclear power could play a vital
1
www.world-nuclear.org
role because it’s a low carbon emitting technology.
2
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7179579.stm
3
GoldmanSachs
4
www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing-and-markets/article.html?in_article_
id=459045&in_page_id=3
5
InternationalAtomicEnergyAgency
6
NobelFoundation
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