IAEA: Mixed Picture for Nuclear Power in OECD Countries
July 21, 2008 // Published as a news service by IHS
While some countries produced record amounts of nuclear electricity last year, nuclear's share of overall electricity production dipped slightly.
The update comes from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Nuclear Energy Agency (OECD/NEA). The latest figures are reported in the NEA Nuclear Energy Data for 2008:
- Nuclear power plants provided 21.6% of the electricity generated in OECD countries, as compared to 22.9% in 2006.
This was despite record production at nuclear power plants in Finland, Hungary and the U.S., which did not offset reduced output in France, Germany and Japan and plant closures in the Slovak Republic and the U.K.
Total nuclear electricity production was 2172 terawatt hours (TWh) in 2007, about 3.6% less than the previous year.
- At the start of 2008, there were 346 nuclear units connected to the electricity grid in 17 of the 30 OECD member countries (Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Netherlands, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, U.K. and U.S.).
- Fourteen nuclear units representing a total capacity of 14.2 gigawatts (GWe) are currently under construction in OECD countries: six are being built in the Republic of Korea, three in Japan, two in the Slovak Republic and one each in Finland, France and the U.S.
- Firm commitments have been made for the construction of 13 more reactors, all in the OECD Pacific region. Once completed, the new units will add 31.2 GWe to OECD electricity grids.
- Twelve units are scheduled to be shut down before 2012: five in Germany, four in the U.K. and one each in France, Japan and the Slovak Republic.