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Nuclear: China is ahead of France

2021-10-02T22:15:48.280Z


The production of electricity of nuclear origin increased by 4.4% in the second largest economy in the world, while in France it fell by 12%.


China's frantic race towards ever more energy capacities is taking it to a new level.

Last year, it became the world number two for nuclear power generation, behind the United States, says the 2021 report on "The World Nuclear Industry".

To read also “Majority or renewable nuclear: beware of“ German quarrels ”!”

France thus loses its second place.

"

The year 2020 has been particularly difficult for the French nuclear sector

", notes the report.

The past year, marked by the Covid-19 crisis, saw a drop in electricity consumption and an upheaval in the reactor maintenance schedule.

France has also definitively shut down the two reactors at Fessenheim.

As a result, the production of electricity in France from nuclear power plants fell by 12% in 2020. It represented 67% of the country's electricity, the lowest share since 1985, details the document prepared under the aegis of Mycle Schneider.

The United States remains the leader

Conversely, China, which is developing infrastructure with both renewable energies and fossil fuels or atoms, has increased its nuclear power with two new reactors in 2020. Nuclear energy production in the Empire du Milieu may have made less progress than in previous years, with an increase of only 4.4% in 2020, this allows it to surpass France.

The United States remains the world leader.

But “

their nuclear fleet continues to age, with an average age of nearly 41 years in mid-2021, and power plants are finding it increasingly difficult to compete.

State subsidies were given to four unprofitable nuclear power plants to avoid their "early shutdown."

Others are threatened with early closure for economic reasons,

”points out the report.

In total, the world nuclear fleet produced a little less electricity last year (-3.9%), a first since 2012. And the share of nuclear in the global energy mix continues to decline.

It represented 10% of electricity production last year, compared to 17% twenty-five years ago.

In terms of installed capacity, by mid-2021, 33 countries operated 415 nuclear reactors, the report summarizes.

In 2020, six reactors were closed worldwide (including two in France) and only five started up, in Belarus and the United Arab Emirates.

The global fleet, however, reached a new record of 369 GW in mid-2021 because, although there are fewer reactors than in the past, they are generally more powerful than before.

Source: lefigaro

All news articles on 2021-10-02

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