For their costings on nuclear the CSIROreliedmainlyonevidencefromKorea,oneofthefewdevelopedcountriestomaintainanuclearconstructionprogram.Adjustingforthecostsofstartingfromscratch,CSIROhascomeupwithanestimatedconstructioncostfora1000MWnuclearplantofatleast$A8.6billion,
leading to an estimated Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE) of between $163/MWh-$264/MWh, for large-scale nuclear.
In2020,the Czech govenment’swinning bid for each of their 1000MW reactors wasA$12.8 billion
For its population size, Australia would need to exceed the highest nuclear build rates ever achieved. Under the coalition’s plans Australia’s nuclear would only achieve12% of generation capacity by 2050.
Because we have no nuclear power regulatory framework, that would have to be established and developed before any negotiated purchases or construction could begin. In addition we don’t have trained personnel in nuclear and that would take a minimum of a decade. The plan also includes SMRs yet none are commercially available. All recent nuclear plants have exceeded budgets and overrun timelines. For these reasons, it is doubtful whether the plan could deliver by 2050.
To suggest nuclear could qualify for Renewable Energy Certificates is an impossibility as it’s not a renewable resource, it’s finite.
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