Challenges in nuclear energy adoption: Why nuclear energy newcomer countries put nuclear power programs on hold?

Philseo Kim; Hanna Yasmine; Man Sung Yim; Sunil S. Chirayath

doi:10.1016/j.net.2023.11.026

Challenges in nuclear energy adoption: Why nuclear energy newcomer countries put nuclear power programs on hold?

Philseo Kim, Hanna Yasmine, Man Sung Yim, Sunil S. Chirayath

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

The pressing need to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions has stimulated a renewed interest in nuclear energy worldwide. However, while numerous countries have shown interest in nuclear power over the course of history, many of them have not continued their pursuit and chosen to defer or abandon their peaceful nuclear power projects. Scrapping a national nuclear power program after making initial efforts implies significant challenges in such a course or a waste of national resources. Therefore, this study aims to identify the crucial factors that influence a country's decision to terminate or hold off its peaceful nuclear power programs. Our empirical analyses demonstrate that major nuclear accidents and leadership changes are significant factors that lead countries to terminate or defer their nuclear power programs. Additionally, we highlight that domestic politics (democracy), lack of military alliance with major nuclear suppliers, low electricity demand, and national energy security environments (energy import, crude oil price) can hamper a country's possibility of regaining interest in a nuclear power program after it has been scrapped, suspended, or deferred. The findings of this study have significant implications for policymakers and stakeholders in the energy sector as they strive to balance the competing demands of energy security, and environmental sustainability.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1234-1243
Number of pages	10
Journal	Nuclear Engineering and Technology
Volume	56
Issue number	4
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.net.2023.11.026
State	Published - Apr 2024
Externally published	Yes

Funding

The decision to halt a country's nuclear power program is not solely determined by the political regime but can also heavily be influenced by the government's political party and change of leadership. Several studies have revealed that in countries such as the European Union [12], South Korea [13], and the United States [14], public preferences for nuclear energy vary based on the political party that the public supports. As public attitudes towards nuclear energy may rely on political reasoning, debates on nuclear power programs can gain significant public support when a leader from a different political party than the former leader is elected. For example, in 2017, former South Korean President Moon Jae-In temporarily suspended the construction of two NPPs under construction, after his election. This decision was due to safety concerns, but later decided to resume construction after a national deliberation process [13]. Although South Korea already had multiple NPPs under operation, this historical event shows that a change in leadership in one country can have a significant impact on the deferral of many nuclear power development plans.The authors acknowledge the Stanton Foundation for their support, as this work was conducted during the fellowship provided by them to Texas A&M University. Yim also acknowledges the financial support from the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF-2022M2C7A1A02063817). The authors acknowledge the Stanton Foundation for their support, as this work was conducted during the fellowship provided by them to Texas A&M University . Yim also acknowledges the financial support from the National Research Foundation of Korea ( NRF-2022M2C7A1A02063817 ).

Funders	Funder number
NPPs
Texas A and M University
Stanton Foundation
European Commission
National Research Foundation of Korea	NRF-2022M2C7A1A02063817

Keywords

Nuclear energy
Nuclear energy newcomer countries
Nuclear power programs

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1016/j.net.2023.11.026

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title = "Challenges in nuclear energy adoption: Why nuclear energy newcomer countries put nuclear power programs on hold?",

abstract = "The pressing need to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions has stimulated a renewed interest in nuclear energy worldwide. However, while numerous countries have shown interest in nuclear power over the course of history, many of them have not continued their pursuit and chosen to defer or abandon their peaceful nuclear power projects. Scrapping a national nuclear power program after making initial efforts implies significant challenges in such a course or a waste of national resources. Therefore, this study aims to identify the crucial factors that influence a country's decision to terminate or hold off its peaceful nuclear power programs. Our empirical analyses demonstrate that major nuclear accidents and leadership changes are significant factors that lead countries to terminate or defer their nuclear power programs. Additionally, we highlight that domestic politics (democracy), lack of military alliance with major nuclear suppliers, low electricity demand, and national energy security environments (energy import, crude oil price) can hamper a country's possibility of regaining interest in a nuclear power program after it has been scrapped, suspended, or deferred. The findings of this study have significant implications for policymakers and stakeholders in the energy sector as they strive to balance the competing demands of energy security, and environmental sustainability.",

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Challenges in nuclear energy adoption: Why nuclear energy newcomer countries put nuclear power programs on hold?

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Keywords

UN SDGs

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