Bill Gates on nuclear energy.
Bill is too polite to say it, but the reason nuclear has become so expensive is that greenies have made it so, by demanding it be orders of magnitude safer than other energies. And quite deliberately to kill it off. Which they've pretty much achieved. To the harm of mankind.
The latest is that Trump has halted Gates' TerraPower company's cooperation with China. And that, in turn will delay cheaper, safer, greener nuclear for all mankind. Shame on the greenies. (And shame on Trump, too, though in his case it was no doubt an unintended consequence of his tariff wars with China. With the Greens it was a specific aim to kill off nuclear power).
/Snip from Bill:
Nuclear is ideal for dealing with climate change, because it is the only carbon-free, scalable energy source that's available 24 hours a day. The problems with today's reactors, such as the risk of accidents, can be solved through innovation.
The United States is uniquely suited to create these advances with its world-class scientists, entrepreneurs, and investment capital.
"Unfortunately, America is no longer the global leader on nuclear energy that it was 50 years ago."
Unfortunately, America is no longer the global leader on nuclear energy that it was 50 years ago. To regain this position, it will need to commit new funding, update regulations, and show investors that it's serious.
There are several promising ideas in advanced nuclear that should be explored if we get over these obstacles. TerraPower, the company I started 10 years ago, uses an approach called a traveling wave reactor that is safe, prevents proliferation, and produces very little waste. We had hoped to build a pilot project in China, but recent policy changes here in the U.S. have made that unlikely. We may be able to build it in the United States if the funding and regulatory changes that I mentioned earlier happen.
The world needs to be working on lots of solutions to stop climate change. Advanced nuclear is one, and I hope to persuade U.S. leaders to get into the game.
