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Wednesday’s announcement by Opposition leader Peter Dutton on the Coalition’s nuclear policy injected long-overdue detail into the energy debate. Finally, we know the seven sites where the Coalition, if elected, would locate nuclear power plants. And now we know the facilities, if built, would be government owned. But beyond that, writes University of Queensland professor John Quiggin, many burning questions remain.
The most glaring is cost. What will taxpayers be forced to stump up for these plants? We don’t know, because Dutton provided no details. Certainly, estimates by the CSIRO and others suggest building a nuclear energy capability in Australia would be prohibitively expensive – and the electricity produced by the technology would be grossly uncompetitive, compared to the cost of renewables.
And who will build these plants? As Quiggin explains, most nuclear reactors under construction around the world are designed and built by China and Russia. Given global geopolitics, this seems an unlikely option for Australia. Most of the remaining contenders have recently overseen projects plagued with trouble.
The list goes on. How will reluctant state governments be brought on board? What inducements would be offered to communities housing the reactors? And crucially, how does the Coalition plan to get reactors up and running by the mid-2030s – a timeframe far shorter than experts say is possible? Let’s hope the answers become clear before Australians go to the polls in what is being billed as a referendum on energy policy.
And as Quiggin notes, all this takes place against the backdrop of worsening climate change, and the pressing need to slash global emissions. “Solar panels, wind turbines and energy storage must be rolled out as rapidly as possible,” Quiggin writes, “and we must not allow Dutton’s policy detour to distract from the task.”
PS. A huge thank you to everyone who has generously donated to The Conversation in recent weeks. We are now 70% of the way to reaching our end-of-financial-year goal, so if you would like to help us keep producing free, evidence-based journalism you can donate here.
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Nicole Hasham
Energy + Environment Editor
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John Quiggin, The University of Queensland
The Coalition’s nuclear policy announcement leaves many burning questions. Exactly what kind of reactors will be built? Who will build them? And how much they will cost?
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