I am a big proponent of nuclear power as well, but i do electric market forecasts for a living. Electricity prices in the US as presently forecasted simply will not allow a brand new nuclear power plant to generate the sort of margin needed to repay its initial construction cost over it's normal operating life. The problem with nuclear power plants is its initial acquisition cost comes in indivisible packets of 5-6 billion dollars each. Sure it is dirt cheap to run once it's built, but there has to be enough margin between the price at which it can sell the electricity, and the cost at which it generates the electricity, to cover the 5-6 billion plus interest over it's life time. Several developments makes that implausible:
1. New techniques to extract natural gas by fracturing shale rocks expanded the size of known gas reserves enormously, driving down natural gas prices and making natural-gas fired power plants so cheap to run as to drive down overall power prices during both on-peak and off-peak periods.
2. The fact the wind turbines generates energy when no body wants the energy means energy prices off-peak can actually go negative.
1. New techniques to extract natural gas by fracturing shale rocks expanded the size of known gas reserves enormously, driving down natural gas prices and making natural-gas fired power plants so cheap to run as to drive down overall power prices during both on-peak and off-peak periods.
2. The fact the wind turbines generates energy when no body wants the energy means energy prices off-peak can actually go negative.
