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Global electricity demand is set to decline 2% in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the International Energy Agency's (IEA's) first ever Electricity Market Report, which was published today. Nuclear power generation is set to fall by about 4% this year, it says. Global electricity demand is forecast to grow by around 3% next year.

Date: Tuesday, 15 December 2020
Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/IEA-charts-COVID-s-impact-on-electricity-market

Policy uncertainty is ‘preventing industry from making investment decisions’ Policy uncertainty in a number of countries is preventing the nuclear industry from making investment decisions and “forthright recognition” by governments of the value of nuclear energy would encourage policymakers to explicitly include nuclear in their long-term energy plans and commitments under the Paris Agreement, the International Energy Agency has said.

The Paris-based agency said in a report on meeting climate goals that nuclear policy uncertainty is partly the result of inconsistencies between stated policy goals – such as climate change mitigation – and policy actions.

While some countries maintain they can meet decarbonisation objectives while phasing out nuclear (Belgium, Germany, Spain, Switzerland) or reducing its share (France), others continue to recognise the need to increase nuclear reliance: China, Russia, India, Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Finland, Hungary, Poland, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the UK and Uzbekistan.

In late 2018, the EU long-term energy strategy clearly stated that nuclear power – together with renewables – will form the backbone of the EU power system in order to reach carbon neutrality by 2050, the IEA said. At the same time, ongoing EU taxonomy discussions regarding the eligibility of nuclear power generation for sustainability funding highlight the difficulties in recognising the contribution that nuclear energy makes to climate change mitigation.

Date: Friday, 12 June 2020
Original article: nucnet.org/news/agency-calls-for-forthright-recognition-of-nuclear-energy-6-4-2020

New-build projects are making progress, but governments are still struggling with finding the right financing package for large reactors The delayed Flamanville-3 is one of three EPR units under construction in Europe. The others are at Olkiluoto in Finland and Hinkley Point in the UK. Photo courtesy EDF. Western Europe

The UK is facing a major challenge to replace its aging fleet of Generation I nuclear power plants, many of which are scheduled to shut down in 2023.

The project by French state utility EDF to build two Generation III EPR units at Hinkley Point C in Somerset is on track for connection to the grid by 2025. Once in commercial operation the two units will provide up to 7% of the total electricity demand. Two similar units are planned for the Sizewell site in Suffolk.

However, press reports have suggested EDF is in “a race against time” to secure a funding deal for Sizewell C as delays risk making the project prohibitively expensive.

According to The Times newspaper EDF has hired Rothschild as financial adviser for the project and says it wants a “definitive way forward” from the government this year so it can start construction in 2022.

Date: Friday, 17 January 2020
Original article: nucnet.org/news/what-lies-in-store-in-2020-1-4-2020

The nuclear industry took part in the UN climate talks this week at a time when the subject is no longer merely climate change, but climate emergency. At a side-event organised by Nuclear for Climate, panellists described how nuclear power is an essential part of the global response to that emergency.

Date: Saturday, 07 December 2019
Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Nuclear-for-Climate-speaks-at-COP-25

Innovation has always been at the heart of the nuclear power industry and its future depends on this commitment to technological advancement in both large and small reactor designs. This was the message of the International Framework for Nuclear Energy Cooperation (IFNEC) General Ministerial Conference held in Washington DC last week.

Date: Tuesday, 19 November 2019
Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Conference-Advancing-the-rebirth-of-nuclear-power

As a result of higher energy consumption, CO2 emissions rose 1.7% last year and hit a new record, according to the latest data from the International Energy Agency (IEA). The Paris-based agency’s Global Energy & CO2 Status Report, released today, shows that the global energy system emitted 33 billion tonnes of CO2 in 2018.

Date: Tuesday, 26 March 2019
Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/IEA-demands-increase-in-clean-energy-as-emissions