Renewables or Nuclear Energy? It’s Not an Either/or Decision

The social and political mandate to aggressively pursue and implement zero-carbon energy-generation solutions is both powerful and necessary. It’s recreating our energy strategies and will continue to do so for years to come. As we attempt to identify the energy-generation options that are most viable – sustainably, economically, reliably, and politically – we’re compelled to find the one answer. But perhaps that search for a singular solution is too limiting and a successful energy future can be found with an approach that’s less constrained.

Instead of the dogged pursuit of the one solution, we need to identify complementary systems that better enable us to meet our energy goals. In all likelihood, the most viable zero-carbon energy system is a hybrid approach that combines sustainable, renewable technologies and next-generation nuclear.

The primary benefit of renewable solutions, most notably wind and solar, is clear – zero-carbon power. Renewable energy has become more viable as the cost of renewable technologies has declined. But there is a limitation: adequate environmental conditions must exist to generate power, and often the necessary conditions aren’t present during periods of peak demand.

That’s when nuclear becomes an essential complement to renewables. A new generation of very small modular reactors (micro reactors) is capable of on-demand power generation. Simply put, micro reactors can be turned on and off as demand ebbs and flows. Nuclear technology suitable for tomorrow’s hybrid systems diverges from the dominant conventional large reactors. Investment costs and safety concerns related to high power and high power-densities make that category of reactor difficult to support with adequate safety and market economies, as well as being susceptible to fluctuations in political opinions and support.

A number of new nuclear concepts and approaches, including micro reactors, have been developed in recent years. Very small Gen IV reactors offer many game-changing features for nuclear-energy development. In contrast to 50 years of reactor development based on the theory “bigger is cheaper,” Gen IV micro reactors offer an alternative path based on a small, truly modular approach.

Availability of zero-carbon Gen IV micro reactors is on the horizon. In the U.S., the Department of Energy has stated a goal in its “Strategic Vision” for advanced nuclear reactors to “demonstrate operation of a nuclear-renewable hybrid energy system” by 2027. Innovative companies are making great strides to meet and beat that deadline.

Micro reactors address the primary challenge for integration with renewables: providing reliability and matching demand with supply at all times. Energy generated by renewables varies significantly with the weather, position of the sun, and other various environmental factors. In 2019, the most most-widely used renewable energy sources in the U.S. – hydroelectric, wind, and solar – only operated 31.3% of the time, up from 29.9% in 2018. The more renewable-dependent a grid, the higher the potential that supply will fail to meet demand.
The answer to the question of which power-generation technology will best meet our zero-carbon goals is not singular. The answer lies in a new approach that marries together complementary systems. Micro reactor technology is a viable complement to renewable installations, enabling utilities to meet fluctuations in customer power demand regardless of weather conditions or time of day.