With a special panel, “The Role of Nuclear Energy in a Net-Zero Future,” the COP26 conference provided a platform on Nov. 4 for speakers to present the alternative to the doomsday perspectives of climate protectors: nuclear science and development.
World Nuclear Association director Sama Bilbao y León said nuclear energy can be “used by all countries of any income.” She pointed out that of the 39 reactors that have been deployed in the past five years, 30 of these have been deployed in emerging economies. Large nuclear power projects have “been able to catalyze a lot of economic development in many countries.”
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi noted that several countries are constructing their first nuclear power plants, including Turkey and Egypt. Other countries—such as Ghana, Kenya and Uzbekistan—are considering the introduction of nuclear into their energy mixes. And some existing nuclear countries are planning more reactors, such as in Brazil, Argentina and Mexico, as well as some Eastern European countries. “Nuclear is everywhere, and will be even more,” he said. “For those who say new nuclear has no place—they should revise their opinion. It is clear nuclear is going to be playing a very key role.”
Ghana’s Ambassador to Austria Philbert Johnson said the country is “taking concrete steps” to include nuclear energy into its national energy mix, as this is in line with its national development targets. “Nuclear energy will guarantee reliable, clean energy at competitive prices.”
