Report foresees first SMNR in Sask. in 2032

[Oscar]

Report foresees first small-modular nuclear reactor in Sask. in 2032

[ https://thestarphoenix.com/news/saskatc ... wZGBoMKBNM ]

The timeline comes from a feasibility study that remains tentative, but it lays out a path to four nuclear reactors in the province by 2042.

April 14, 2021

A tentative plan to bring a small-modular nuclear reactor to Saskatchewan in 2032 was released on Wednesday, the first of four that could be built over a decade to generate 1,200 megawatts of emissions-free power.

That’s according to a feasibility study ( "Feasibility of Small modular Reactor Development and Deployment in Canada" [ https://saskatoonchamber.com/wp-content ... 1OkC2sPULc ] ) on the nascent technology by SaskPower, along with utilities in New Brunswick and Ontario. It’s part of the process launched by a memorandum of understanding between the three provinces, and joined by Alberta on Wednesday.

On a virtual conference marking the event, Premier Scott Moe called it a “crucial undertaking for our nation.” He said the report released that day confirms that small-modular reactors are feasible from both a technological and economic perspective.

“That conclusion was not surprising,” said Moe, who has made the technology a key pillar of his government’s long-term plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions beyond 2030. [ https://leaderpost.com/news/saskatchewa ... r-reactors ] . . . .


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[Oscar]

Small modular reactors are a nuclear lemon

[ https://thestarphoenix.com/opinion/lett ... BPPgyA5C5M ]

It's surprising that our conservative-leaning premier would promote the SMR fantasy, writes David Geary.

May 15, 2021

Small modular nuclear reactors for Sask.?

Re: Province could flip switch on small reactor by 2032 (SP, April 15)
[ https://thestarphoenix.com/news/saskatc ... sk-in-2032 ]

Premier Scott Moe, don’t buy a nuclear lemon.

Aggressive marketing tactics by small modular reactor (SMR) startup companies are reminiscent of Ponzi or multi-level marketing (MLM) schemes — a sense of urgency, zealous enthusiasm, wishful thinking trumping market forces, and (lemon) pie-in-the-sky promises of fabulous wealth … but only if we first sink billions of our own dollars into it.

Worse, unlike other MLM enterprises, there is no actual proven product here. Speculative SMR designs are “paper reactors,” existing only as drawings or as slick computer graphics.

SMR startups are American, not Canadian. Their enriched uranium or plutonium fuel would come from the U.S., not Saskatchewan.

Unlike the stricter U.S. nuclear regulator, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) is perceived as being lax toward SMRs.

Curiously, the CNSC wants to exempt these untested devices from environmental assessment. American utilities, banks, financial institutions, and savvy private investors have mostly stayed away from this risky, controversial, divisive and unnecessary technology.

Despite proponents’ hype, there is no realistic business case. There is simply no demonstrated market/demand for SMRs.

It’s surprising that our conservative-leaning premier would promote the SMR fantasy, especially since nuclear power is inherently socialist in nature. It’s called “Lemon Socialism” by Yale economist Mark Cooper, environmentalist Ralph Nader and others. That term means nuclear cannot survive without enormous financial subsidies from taxpayers, then ultimately a few favoured private companies reap any assets and profits, while a soured public is stuck with the radioactive liabilities, the “lemons.”

David Geary
Saskatoon