Don’t go for pricey foreign N-power plants when solar’s going dirt-cheap

Forget the Bush-Manmohan Singh vision of a nuclear power renaissance. Recent developments — cheap solar power plus the bankruptcy of Westinghouse — call for a total overhaul of nuclear plans that now look obsolete, dangerous and ultra-costly.

I say this as one who solidly supported the Bush-Manmohan deal in 2005. That deal lifted sanctions against India, and provided access to imported uranium and nuclear technology. In return, the US, France, Japan and Russia were to build six nuclear plants each in India, reviving their flagging equipment industries.

In 2005, the nuclear industry expected a boom following global concerns on greenhouse gases. Nuclear power then was costlier than coal-based power but much cheaper than solar. With many nations going big on nuclear, scale economies plus third-generation technology promised to make nuclear power as cheap as thermal power, minus the carbon.

Then came the Fukushima disaster in Japan. This highlighted the nuclear power risks. It led to the closure of old nuclear plants and cancellation of new ones across the world. The disappearance of mass orders killed scale economies for equipment, while new safety concerns led to expensive re-design.

Meanwhile 3G technology flopped in the power stations France’s Areva was building in Finland and Normandy, causing huge cost and time overruns. Areva sank financially, and was rescued by EDF of France. But EDF itself was financially stressed and could not find the equity capital for a contracted nuclear station at Hinkley Point, UK. That project was saved when China Nuclear Electric agreed to take a 33% stake. The project will supply power at Rs 8/unit, double the current wholesale price, amidst widespread criticism.