GLOBAL 2000 publishes fact-checking video on the COP 28 climate conference – nuclear power more than twice as expensive as renewables, aging-related nuclear power plant failures endanger security of supply
Vienna (OTS) – At the start of COP 28 in Dubai tomorrow, GLOBAL 2000 and its German partner organization BUND Nature Conservation are publishing an animated video that analyzes the facts about nuclear power as a possible contribution to climate protection. The explanatory video is intended to particularly appeal to younger people who are exposed to disinformation campaigns via YouTube and other social media platforms.
“Many of the nuclear industry’s claims do not stand up to an objective fact check based on reputable sources such as the International Energy Agency or the World Report of the Nuclear Industry,” explains Reinhard Uhrig, nuclear expert at GLOBAL 2000. “The announcements of ‘new’ or ‘modular’ reactor concepts (SMR and nuclear fusion) are also coming too late in the next decade relevant to the climate crisis – if they ever become ready for series production, because, according to the Nuclear Energy Agency of the International Energy Agency, this is questionable .”
According to current data from the International Energy Agency based in Paris, electricity from nuclear power costs more than twice as much as electricity from modern renewables such as wind and solar, even if you take into account the capacity and flexibility costs of the variable feed-in of renewables. Climate protection must reduce CO2 emissions worldwide as cost-effectively as possible – the high price per kilowatt hour alone disqualifies nuclear power as a measure.
Furthermore, data from the World report on the nuclear industry (World Nuclear Industry Status Report) that the construction of new nuclear power plants is so complex that new projects cannot be completed in the relevant time until 2040, whereas solar power plants and wind turbines come online much faster.
Of the almost 400 reactors worldwide, their aging is causing increasingly inadequate security of supply due to many unscheduled outages: in France, half of the reactor fleet was shut down in 2022 for necessary repair work on emergency cooling feed nozzles, and the country, which is heavily dependent on nuclear power, was forced to withdraw large amounts of electricity Source abroad. However, the failure of individual renewable systems can be more easily compensated for by other units or other types of renewable generation due to their smaller size.
Nuclear powers are planning a nuclear show at the climate conference
In the run-up to COP 28, several major nuclear powers have already positioned themselves to promote nuclear power at the climate conference, including the USA and Great Britain as well as France, but also countries such as Sweden, which have changed their position on nuclear power under a new right-wing populist government.
“We invite the public interested in climate to check the facts with us and not to fall for the show put on by the world’s ailing nuclear industry at the climate conference,” says Uhrig in conclusion. “The long-standing world market leaders in the nuclear sector, Rosatom from Russia and China General Nuclear from China, are no longer serving as suppliers in many regions of the world for geopolitical reasons, while the Western companies EdF from France and Westinghouse from the USA are in massive financial difficulties. The radioactive appearance is deceptive – the actual path to quickly, cost-effectively and safely curbing the climate crisis is renewable.”
Video download and embed details
The video is too here callable!
Questions & Contact:
Hannah Keller, press spokesperson GLOBAL 2000, 0699 14 2000 64, hannah.keller@global2000.at
Reinhard Uhrig, GLOBAL 2000 Anti-Atomsprecher, +43 699 14 2000 18, reinhard.uhrig@global2000.at