The Vital Business of Nuclear
April 2000 issue of Utility Business magazine
Rick Priory
Chairman, President and CEO
Duke Energy
Each day, the 100-plus nuclear units in the U.S. safely and reliably churn out about 20 percent of the nation’s electricity with no fanfare—no stories on the nightly news, no feature articles in national magazines and no Internet flashes on your computer screen.
Today’s nuclear plants are “out of sight, out of mind” because of stellar operational performance. There is a strong, vibrant nuclear industry that no one ever sees. It’s a story of increased safety, better reliability and improved economics—and it’s worth talking about. Sure, it may get a brief positive mention when the world’s attention turns to greenhouse gases and the ozone layer. It’s difficult to overlook that 20 percent of the nation’s electricity is produced without greenhouse gases being emitted to the environment.
But unfortunately it’s an industry that suffers from negative perceptions and unfavorable press. Still, I believe today that the nuclear power industry can build on its strong recent performance and continue to be a powerful force in the energy business going forward. We cannot, and should not, depend solely on our fossil fuels to power this planet in the new century. And the non-traditional sources—wind, solar and fuel cells—are today too limited in scope to be a significant contributor for years to come.
The nuclear industry has a proud operational record in recent years. In 1998, capacity factors for the industry reached record levels at 84.3 percent. The duration of refueling outages has dropped from about 75 days in 1990 to about 43 days in 1998. And other industries are envious of how nuclear units share information among themselves in the ever-competitive energy industry.
As the world passes the 6 billion-population figure, nuclear must be a part of future energy needs. In 50 years, the United Nations estimates that the world’s population could be anywhere from 8 to 12 billion. Nuclear has to be part of the equation to electrify that estimated population growth—plus the additional 2 billion on the planet who do not have electricity right now. Fossil fuels cannot do the job alone. We must strive for a balanced generation mix for the good of all.
Interestingly, other countries have passed the United States in making nuclear a major part of their generation mix. Spain, Sweden, Japan and France all depend on nuclear to contribute more than 30 percent of their energy needs. The U.S. appears to be depending solely on natural gas to fuel new generation, and there are many good reasons to build natural gas generation. How long can this go on? The power supply of the country should take advantage of all types of fuels for generation—not just one.
There is no question that nuclear has its challenges. The slow thaw of public perception echoes the point that the industry is only as strong as its weakest link. I cannot underscore enough the importance of the industry’s cooperative efforts—the Institute of Nuclear Power Operators and the World Association of Nuclear Operations—in striving to bring safe and efficient operation to the world’s nuclear power fleet. When it comes to safe operation, we must be diligent in raising the bar for each other.
As we move into the new century, nuclear professionals must focus on four key challenges to ensure that nuclear power remains a vital element of the energy mix going forward.
Continued Improvement
The 1990s was a stellar decade as nuclear units improved in safety performance and reliability. No need to let up now. Like other power plants, nuclear units will be judged on economic performance and the cost-effectiveness of those plants competing in the open wholesale market. Energy companies are making decisions about some units—whether to spend money to upgrade them to run well into this century, or to decommission them. Economics will drive many of those decisions.
Strengthen All Operators
The image of nuclear power plants should be a reflection of the great professionals who operate these facilities. It isn’t. Unfortunately, the industry is portrayed by its problem plants. The industry must make the most of its international organizations to improve operations at all plants. For the past 10 years, we have sent our own experts to plants in the Ukraine. If sharing information allows plants to continue to operate more safely, then we all win.
Successful License Renewal
With proper maintenance, nuclear units can easily operate safely and reliably past their initial 40-year license. But it is imperative that many of the first plants seeking license renewal (and Duke Energy is one of them) be successful in order that other plants can follow.
Waste Disposal
It’s not enough for energy companies to sit back and say, “That’s the government’s job.” Energy companies need to be pressing the issue that will get permanent storage off the back burner and moving toward a final solution. The technology exists to accomplish this.
Easy stuff, right? Not at all. But the nuclear industry has been a resilient warrior in facing challenges in the past. I expect it will be so in the future. The 100-plus nuclear units churning out power in the U.S. everyday are critical to the energy mix here, as other energy units are around the world. Nuclear power keeps the power flowing to countless other businesses every day. It is a fact we should remember as we begin a successful century in the nuclear industry.
