TEXAS PICKS WIND OVER NUKES

Wind Power Beats Nuclear Power in Texas
April 21, 2011 (Clean Technica)

"Texas has more wind power than it can use, and…NRG Energy, Inc. has backed out of a plan to build two new nuclear reactors in the state…[tho] the stated motivation for the decision was the [Fukushima] nuclear disaster…[I]t’s also clear that rapid growth in the alternative energy field is rapidly chipping away at nuclear power, helped along by new grid and energy storage technologies. This triple threat is undermining the…[idea that nuclear power provides] the most abundant and reliable energy bang for the buck…

"…On a global scale, energy capacity from renewable sources passed up nuclear for the first time last year [before the Fukushima nuclear incident]…[T]he fossil fuel [industries ship] coal and petroleum around the world. For renewable energy, massive transmission projects…are at hand…[and incipient] advanced energy storage technologies [will] enable renewable energy to be shipped in [reusable or recyclable] battery-type devices…"

California, too, found wind a vastly more affordable source of electricity than nuclear, even before Fukushima. (click to enlarge)

"The wind surplus in Texas could have a ripple effect on energy investments in other states…Pattern Energy…has proposed building a 400-mile line connecting wind power from Texas to existing transmission lines that serve Alabama and several other southern states. Unlike the decades-long process involved in siting and building new nuclear facilities, the company anticipates a permitting and construction process of about five years. Also slated for Texas is a gigantic new wind power storage facility, which other states are already eyeballing for the Pacific Northwest renewables…

"…The primary reason [for NRG’s decision reportedly] is a months-long safety review by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission following the tsunami in Japan, which could jack up the cost of the project due to design changes and other factors…[There is also] uncertainty over financing, which was supposed to come from Fukushima’s owner Tokyo Electric Power…[Also,] there is no [Texas] regulatory structure that would basically guarantee NRG a captive [market]…The two new reactors would have to compete on price along with every other form of available power…"

Texas, which is suffering a terrible drought, might also note that nuclear is water intensive and wind needs no water. (click to enlarge)

""For all its advantages, nuclear energy is a high risk endeavor. Those risks are becoming increasingly untenable – and incredibly expensive – as existing plants get older. New York’s aging Indian Point nuclear facility has started to raise alarm bells…[and New York’s] Shoreham nuclear power plant, had to be decommissioned before it ever went online, partly because planners failed to account for population growth in nearby suburbs. Ratepayers were stuck with the tab and the facility still sits there, sucking up valuable real estate…"

"…NRG’s partner Toshiba is still intending to move ahead with the permitting process. Toshiba signed onto the project just two years ago in 2009, which is pretty much a blip on the screen in nuclear construction terms, so it’s no surprise that the company hasn’t thrown in the towel yet. However, given that wind power is set to take off not only in western U.S. states but all up and down the East Coast as well, the prospects for nuclear look pretty dim."