Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries;-Often, when discussing the energy transition, nuclear power is forgotten. Although nuclear fission can serve as a dependable supply of inexpensive energy, the high cost of building nuclear reactors makes the nuclear industry challenging to break into.
Nuclear waste presents a distinct issue even though nuclear energy doesn’t directly produce greenhouse gases. Despite the fact that contemporary procedures and global norms reduce these risks to a minimum, nuclear energy is nevertheless viewed negatively by the general public.
Japan has taken steps to shut down its remaining nuclear facilities in the wake of the Fukushima tragedy in 2011. Action was also sparked in Germany, where a tenacious anti-nuclear movement succeeded in getting all German nuclear facilities shut down by 2022.
The top 10 Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries
1. United States – 91.5GW of nuclear generation
With 93 reactors spread over 30 states, the nuclear installed capacity of the United States is 91.5 GW. In 2019, the nation generated 843TWh using these, accounting for more than 30% of all nuclear energy produced worldwide.
Given that the US relies more on coal and natural gas for power generation, this amounts to 20% of the nation’s overall energy consumption.
As part of the Vogtle project, two more reactors are being built in the state of Georgia. After delays due to safety flaws in the first reactor’s design, these are anticipated to go online in 2022.
Indian Point 2 and Duane Arnold, two outdated reactors with a combined capacity of 1.5 GW, were shut down in 2020.The top 10 Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries
2.France – 61.3GW of nuclear generation
With 93 reactors spread over 30 states, the nuclear installed capacity of the United States is 91.5 GW. In 2019, the nation generated 843TWh using these, accounting for more than 30% of all nuclear energy produced worldwide.
As the US relies more onFrance generates about two-thirds of its electricity from nuclear sources, a higher share than any other country, this amounts to 20% of the nation’s overall electricity consumption. The country’s nuclear prices have decreased as a result of the concentration of nuclear knowledge, and it is now able to produce 17% of its electricity using used nuclear fuel.
France is able to export more electricity generated by nuclear power than any other nation thanks to its connections to the European grid.
In 2020, the nation’s 56 operating reactors will produce a total of 338.7TWh. In France.The top 10 Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries
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3.China – 50.8GW of nuclear generation
China is the third-largest nuclear energy producer in the world with a net installed capacity of 50.8 GW. Despite the fact that nuclear energy makes just a modest portion of China’s massive energy grid, the country has 51 nuclear reactors. In 2019, only 5% of the electricity in China came from nuclear sources. The total amount of nuclear energy produced that year was 330TWh.
With 18 reactors currently under construction, China’s power sector is still growing quickly. The nation’s power networks would generate 17.2GW more energy as a result. In addition, it has been proposed to build 39 nuclear reactors with a total gross capacity of 43GW.
Chinese engineers welcomed the start of operations at the first third-generation pressurized water reactor in their nation in January 2021. China’s first domestically produced reactor, the Hualong One, is intended to be substantially more efficient than
4.Japan – 31.7GW of nuclear generation
Japan now has 33 operating nuclear reactors with a total installed capacity of 31.7 GW, and two further reactors (Ohma 1 and Shimane 3) with a total installed capacity of 2.6 GW are currently being built.
Before the Fukushima Daiichi plant melted down in March 2011, Japan got about 30% of its electricity from nuclear sources. Japan would have come in third place on this ranking at the time.
The Japanese government temporarily halted all nuclear generation for two years after the tragedy. In order to stop any further mishaps, a new national nuclear authority took over the oversight of the reactors and implemented new controls and procedures.
During this time, rising coal power and coal imports were caused by a decline in nuclear generation. The following economic and environmental repercussions were unpopular,The top 10 Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries
5.Russia – 29.6GW of nuclear generation
38 operational reactors in Russia have a net combined capacity of 29.6 GW. In addition, as part of the Kursk II project, two more reactors with a total net capacity of 2.3GW are being built.
Russia generated 195.5TWh of nuclear energy in 2019, which was equivalent to about 19.7% of its total electricity output.
The USSR was one of the initial leaders in nuclear technology before modern Russia was founded. Engineers built reactors of Soviet design over much of Eastern Europe, and Russia is still the world leader in the development of fast neutron reactors.
Rosatom, the state-owned nuclear energy firm, anticipates that the Proryv Project would create a closed nuclear fuel cycle based on fast reactors for large-scale industrial application.The top 10 Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries
6.South Korea – 24.5GW of nuclear generation
With a combined 24.5GW capacity, South Korea’s 24 operating nuclear reactors are in operation. Near the towns of Gyeongju, Ulsan, and Busan, on the country’s south-eastern coast, are three of the four operating reactors. Numerous large manufacturing facilities are located in the heavily populated area, which leads to a comparatively high demand for electricity.
In 2019, nuclear energy produced 146TWh in South Korea, whereas natural gas produced a comparable amount. Each of these fuels produces about 25% of the nation’s total electricity, lagging behind coal’s 42% market share in Korea.
The country is currently building four nuclear reactors (Shin Hanul 1 and 2, as well as Shin Kori 5 and 6), all of which are located along the country’s southeast coast. When complete, this will increase the Korean grid’s net capacity by 5.3GW.The top 10 Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries
7.Canada – 13.6GW of nuclear generation
Canada has four nuclear power stations with a total of 19 operating reactors, the majority of which are in the province of Ontario. These add up to a total net installed capacity of 13.6GW for the nation.
Canada produced 94.9TWh of nuclear energy in 2019, making up 14.9% of the nation’s overall electricity output.
Canadian Deuterium-Uranium (CANDU) reactors, which employ pressurized heavy water as a coolant and moderator while using uranium as fuel, are present in every nuclear power station in Canada.The top 10 Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries
8.Ukraine – 13.1GW of nuclear generation
With a total installed capacity of 13.1 GW and 15 operational nuclear reactors, Ukraine also has two reactors (Khmelnitski 3 and 4) under development. When finished, these pressurized heavy water reactors will have a 2GW net capacity.
In 2019, Ukraine produced 78.1 TWh of nuclear energy, representing 53.9% of the nation’s total electrical output.
The nation is heavily reliant on nuclear energy, and Russia provides the majority of its nuclear fuel and services. The nation actively buys gasoline from the US corporation Westinghouse to minimize its reliance on Russia as a result of geopolitical disputes.The top 10 Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries
9.United Kingdom – 8.9GW of nuclear generation
With 13 active nuclear reactors, the UK has a total net nuclear energy capacity of 8.9 GW. Approximately 16% of the nation’s total electricity output, 51TWh, was produced from nuclear energy in 2019.
Two additional reactors, with a combined capacity of 3.3GW, are now being built at the active Hinkley Point station. 7% of the nation’s current electricity needs would be met by these.
By 2035, the majority of the nation’s active nuclear power reactors will have been shut down. At least one new nuclear reactor will be developed with backing from the UK government. Nuclear developers have had a conflicted response to the legislation and funding around this, with various projects proposed and scrapped over the past several years.The top 10 Best Nuclear Energy-Producing Countries
10.Spain – 7.1GW of nuclear generation
Sweden formerly occupied the tenth position. The nation’s installed nuclear capacity dropped below Spain after the closure of its Ringhals 1 and 2 reactors.
Spain presently gets 22% of its electricity from nuclear sources. The nation’s 7.1 GW installed capacity is produced by seven reactors. Between 1983 and 1988 saw the first grid connections for all of these, and nuclear power has received little attention since then.
Ministers in the government have relaxed lifetime restrictions on nuclear power reactors and deemed them “vital” to the nation’s energy grid. Six of the nation’s seven reactors extended their licenses for the upcoming years in 2020 and 2021. These would all run out before to 2035, when the Spanish government intends to completely phase out nuclear energy.
2018 announcement from the Spanish government
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