The CSIRO graph speaks for itself. Do you want to choose low cost energy or high cost nuclear with the existing waste disposal and risk issues. Who wants the nuclear disposal depot near your place.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-12-21/nuclear-energy-most-expensive-csiro-gencost-report-draft/103253678The graph below shows estimated costs for 2023.
The most expensive power in 2023 would come from a theoretical small modular nuclear reactor (SMR), and the second-most expensive would come from a peaking plant run on hydrogen.
That point about nuclear energy is significant.
CSIRO's scientists say until recently, discussions about the potential cost of using nuclear energy in Australia have remained theoretical, with a lack of data from completed commercial projects hindering attempts to make worthwhile calculations.
However, it says a recently-aborted attempt in the US to develop a nuclear SMR project provided valuable data on this question.
It says GenCost has been advised by stakeholders that SMRs are the appropriate size nuclear technology for Australia.
It says global inflationary pressures saw most technology capital costs increase by 20 per cent in 2022, but the costs for the nuclear SMR project in the US increased by roughly 70 per cent, which contributed to the project being cancelled in November this year.
It says that real-life cost data had not been included in previous GenCost reports, and as a consequence, current capital costs for nuclear SMR in this report have been "significantly increased" to bring them into line with the experience of that US project.
"The cancellation of this project is significant because it was the only SMR project in the US that had received design certification from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which is an essential step before construction can commence," the report notes.
See the report on link above
