Recently
I was asked to present a speech as part of an international forum entitled
“Atoms for Peace ... The Next 50 Years” in Washington, DC.
50 YEARS OF
PROGRESS
As I completed some
research for my presentation, I was struck by how far the nuclear industry
had come in the 50 years since President Eisenhower’s famous address,
and how much potential remains for the development and utilization of
this unique technology.
Eisenhower’s
address was focused on the peaceful use of nuclear energy and science
for the betterment of mankind. I think it would be fair to recognize that
nuclear technology has benefited mankind in varied and significant ways.
Providing about 17% of the world’s power generation, powering various
space exploration missions, developing numerous medical isotopes for treating
previously incurable or inoperable diseases, and treating food for safe
consumption are but a few of these demonstrable benefits.
In February of 2003,
I became the President & CEO of GE Energy’s Nuclear Operations.
Since joining GE in 1981 as an electrical engineer, I had most recently
spent five years in Atlanta as general manager for Installation and Field
Services - GE Energy’s global installation and service business
for GE gas and steam turbine generators. The move into the new role has
been challenging and exciting.
NEXT GENERATION
REACTORS
GE’s nuclear
services essentially provide technology that is engineered and developed
to provide next-generation reactors for safer, more economic and high
performance energy generation, advanced nuclear fuels and an array of
technology driven services. These offerings range from the completion
of a maintenance outage to the enhancement of customer assets or the on-line
optimization of fuel performance and even the supply of medical isotopes
to nuclear medicine vendors and hospitals.
GE is a long-time
supplier of boiling water reactor (BWR) technology to the global nuclear
industry. Recently we have expanded our portfolio to include pressurized
water reactors (PWR) services, a technology that is rapidly gaining acceptance
around the world.
In BWR facilities,
boiled water in the reactor creates steam which drives the turbine. In
PWR plants, pressurized water is heated and first put through a heat exchange
unit, thus creating a “cleaner” steam.
Today, GE’s
nuclear services business provides a wide array of technology-based products
and services to help owners of both BWR and PWRS nuclear power plants
safely operate their facilities with greater efficiency and output.
Our solutions leverage
50 years of peaceful use of nuclear technology. . . continuing to push
the bounds of our knowledge within stringent safety guidelines, in an
industry that continues to demonstrate potential in the face of its own
unique challenges.
THE CHALLENGE
AHEAD
There has been an
impressive increase in nuclear plant performance and safety over the last
two decades and nuclear power has reached unprecedented levels of plant
safety, energy generation and capacity factors in the U.S. As a vendor
to the nuclear energy industry we must continue to drive improvements
even when the record levels of production, safety and performance make
that challenge even harder.
BALANCED PORTFOLIO
Further development
of nuclear energy as part of a balanced portfolio of power generation
is essential for many developed and developing nations. As an industry
however, we face many challenges - both public and political - including
economic competitiveness, nuclear safety and security, nuclear waste management,
and non-proliferation. These are all important but not insurmountable
factors. It is critical that we address both the world’s energy
needs and the concerns of the public to ensure safe, economic and efficient
options within the nuclear industry.
FUTURE POWER
DEMANDS
Electricity demand
is expected to increase by about 30% in the U.S. and Europe by the year
2020, and will more than double in Asia and the rest of the world. That
leaves the global energy industry with the challenge of meeting a tremendous
need for more power - and do it while also protecting the environment
and preserving our natural resources.
Although renewable
energy certainly holds significant promise, no single solution will meet
all of the world’s energy needs. Satisfying that demand will require
a balanced and diverse range of clean energy options, with nuclear playing
an increasingly important role .
Nuclear power generation
is one of the few energy sources capable of generating huge amounts of
megawatt output while avoiding millions of tons of NOx, SOx and CO2 when
compared to conventional fossil energy . The air pollution prevention
benefits associated with nuclear energy are significant. In the U.S. alone,
nuclear power has generated approximately 13.7 trillion kilowatt hours
of electricity and at the same time, avoided the emission of 3.1 billion
tons of carbon, 73.6 million tons of sulfur dioxide and 35.7 million tons
of nitrogen oxides that would have been associated with fossil fuel sources
of power generation.
PUBLICS NEED
TO KNOW
The media and general
public often overlook environmental and other benefits associated with
nuclear power. It is therefore important that those of us in the industry
communicate these benefits in a clear and concise manner. For example,
nuclear power is an important part of a balanced global energy portfolio,
it avoids huge quantities of harmful emissions and it helps to conserve
our natural resources. These messages should be reflected in public policy
that provide incentives for developing the nuclear portfolio and perhaps
even allows for its inclusion in emerging cap and trade programs designed
to reduce harmful emissions and the problems of global warming.
PASS THE
ENERGY BILL
The draft Energy
Bill takes some steps toward recognizing the value and importance of nuclear
power in the U.S. Its approval in the next session of Congress would provide
an important boost to the industry and the country’s hopes of achieving
voluntary reductions in carbon emissions, maintaining the balance in the
nation’s energy generation sources and reducing dependence on any
one type of fossil fuel.
GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT
Globally we see a
lot of activity in nuclear power. Currently there are more than 30 new
reactors equivalent to 26 gigawatts being built around the world, and
there are more than 50 gigawatts of reactors planned for future development.
With this in mind, it is important that the industry continues to share
best practices through organizations such as the World Association of
Nuclear Operators (WANO) and to encourage the continual improvement of
nuclear power plant operational safety and performance.
For our part, we must
continue to support both our customers in the sharing of best practices,
and the government in key areas such as non-proliferation and nuclear
liability, to ensure that the best technologies, practices and services
are available on a global basis.
Closer to home, the
Energy Bill could herald the development of new next generation nuclear
plants in the U.S. It could pro-vide incentives, similar to those available
today for wind generation, for a limited number of new nuclear power plants.
This would be significant and vital for sustaining the nuclear industry
in the U.S. and would support the continued role of the U.S. on the world
stage for nuclear energy, ensuring the availability of new reactor technology
that is even safer and more efficient than that which exists today.
NEW DIRECTIONS
‘Atoms for Peace
... The Next 50 Years’ represented an opportunity to reflect upon
the birth of an industry that was based on the peaceful application of
a science that offered, and then delivered, so much. We have learned an
enormous amount in the past five decades, and that process has not stopped.
Today we look for new directions in the application of proven technology
that, to many, represents the very essence of energy. It is no less than
remarkable to consider what we have done and imagine what we still can
achieve.
FUTURE HOLDS
PROMISE
For us, where we
go next is driven by three fundamentals: business acumen, advanced engineering
and enlightened public policy. We believe that we have the first two and
that, in the U.S. at least, the government may be well on the way to developing
the third.
These are exciting
times and the next generation of advanced nuclear technology is likely
to be significant in many ways. For example, high temperature reactors
could be used for hydrogen cogeneration through high temperature electrolysis
or thermal water cracking, microscopic nuclear fission could be used in
many nanotechnology applications, and new isotopes could help with important
medical research.
THE VISION
WILL CONTINUE
Experience and technology
combined with new talent, training and imagination, provide a path to
the future ... safe, reliable power without harmful emissions.
In short, the ‘Atoms
for Peace’ vision will continue and we will continue to drive new
technologies, services, systems and solutions. |