Italy Looks to Revive Its Nuclear Power Industry
Italy’s government on Friday approved a proposal to begin drafting a series of laws that would ultimately lead to Italy’s return to nuclear power generation after more than four decades.
Italy halted nuclear reactors after a referendum in 1987 following the Chernobyl disaster a year earlier. In 2011, Italians rejected again the use of nuclear power in yet another referendum.
But Italy’s current government led by Giorgia Meloni said last year that it plans to adopt legislation to return to nuclear power with the latest generation of small modular reactors (SMRs), as part of efforts to decarbonize industry.
These reactors are believed to be simpler and cheaper to build and install. Because of their smaller size, it is possible to install SMRs on sites that are not suitable for bigger reactors. They are also significantly cheaper and faster to build than conventional reactors and can be constructed incrementally to meet the growing energy demand of a site.
Today, the Italian government launched the process to draft and eventually adopt laws to return to nuclear power.
“We will be able to achieve the decarbonization targets with the latest-generation nuclear and renewables, guaranteeing the country’s full energy security,” Italian Energy Security Minister and Environment Minister, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, said in a statement.
Italy looks to finalize by the end of 2027 plans and legislation that would allow a return to nuclear power generation after more than four decades, Pichetto said last month.
“Italy is ready to return to nuclear power, which is a crucial choice and will not replace renewables, but complement them,” Pichetto said.
Last year, Pichetto said that Italy is in talks with several companies, including U.S. Westinghouse and French EDF, for nuclear power cooperation. The companies could be partners in an Italian state-backed firm to build advanced nuclear reactors in Italy, the minister said in October.
“The scale of investment in nuclear power requires cooperation with several international players,” Pichetto told reporters.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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