New nuclear: we know now it’s much more expensive than other options. But Central and Eastern European countries are investing in new projects (and the costs will be subsidized by tax payers). Policymakers argue that on the European grid, these prices make sense–but Jan Ondrich thinks otherwise. According to the World Nuclear Association, there have been close to 15GW of new nuclear projects announced in Central and Eastern European countries over the past 5 years. All those projects will benefit from some form of state subsidy if they are ever going to be commenced and commissioned. The most popular subsidy scheme to enable construction of nuclear power plants is a mix of guaranteed power price at which the plant sells power to the power grid combined with state guarantees for debt and equity financing.
Energy Transition 2nd Jan 2017 read more »