Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

bbc.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 285 posts

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#11

Post by sudosysgen »

Gwypaas wrote: post #5
LatteLazy wrote: post #3

The others are already over budget and behind schedule, the private companies meant to be heading them are dropping like flies. This won't end well... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-54158091 https://www.pbctoday.co.uk/news/energy-news/toshiba-withdraw... https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/sep/25/hinkley-poin...

Westinghouse filed for bankruptcy due to failed nuclear construction in the U.S. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/29/business/westinghouse-tos... Areva, responsible for the construction of Olkiluoto-3 in Finland on a fixed price contract. Restructured and sold all of it's reactor business except Olkiluoto-3, which it still is liable for, to EDF. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Areva

It's always astonishing how hydro and nuclear are so much better handled by SoEs like EDF or HydroQuebec that manage to turn a profit too, while private companies can never do it well.

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#12

Post by LatteLazy »

rbg246 wrote: post #4
LatteLazy wrote: post #3

The others are already over budget and behind schedule, the private companies meant to be heading them are dropping like flies. This won't end well... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-54158091 https://www.pbctoday.co.uk/news/energy-news/toshiba-withdraw... https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/sep/25/hinkley-poin...

It's a job stimulus package, creating 10000 jobs and advertising this(whether or not it eventuates) is the reason for giving this project the green light.

I think you're right. Though for 2mil quid a job, we could have done better just picking people and sending them cheques imho...

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#13

Post by godelski »

Afforess wrote: post #8
steeve wrote: post #2

Good news for the climate and the environment!

There is no evidence nuclear waste can be disposed of safely in the medium or long term. Only technocrats and elites want more nuclear energy. Its not the will of the voting public. This is a defeat for the environment and democracy.

Do you actually have evidence of this? Because I have evidence to the contrary.

https://whatisnuclear.com/waste.html

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#14

Post by com2kid »

Afforess wrote: post #8
steeve wrote: post #2

Good news for the climate and the environment!

There is no evidence nuclear waste can be disposed of safely in the medium or long term. Only technocrats and elites want more nuclear energy. Its not the will of the voting public. This is a defeat for the environment and democracy.

> There is no evidence nuclear waste can be disposed of safely in the medium or long term. Only technocrats and elites want more nuclear energy. Its not the will of the voting public. This is a defeat for the environment and democracy.

You could put all the nuclear waste the US has ever produced on one football field stacked 3 stories high.

Roughly 83,000 metric tons.

Meanwhile we produce over 50 million tons of electronic waste that is full of nasty heavy metals that can, and do, leech into the environment causing wide spread destruction, because instead of storing them in some sort of containment vessel we just dump them on whatever country will take a pittance payment.

Nuclear waste storage is a NIMBY problem, in terms of environmental pollutants you could probably find hog farms that churn out more waste.

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#15

Post by Afforess »

godelski wrote: post #13
Afforess wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no evidence nuclear waste can be disposed of safely in the medium or long term. Only technocrats and elites want more nuclear energy. Its not the will of the voting public. This is a defeat for the environment and democracy.

Do you actually have evidence of this? Because I have evidence to the contrary. https://whatisnuclear.com/waste.html

Nuclear waste has not existed in the medium or long term. It hasn't even existed longer than the Catholic church, a mere blip on histories timescale. Of course there is no evidence. But the short term failures do not give me hope.

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#16

Post by Reason077 »

belorn wrote: post #6
LatteLazy wrote: post #3

The others are already over budget and behind schedule, the private companies meant to be heading them are dropping like flies. This won't end well... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-54158091 https://www.pbctoday.co.uk/news/energy-news/toshiba-withdraw... https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/sep/25/hinkley-poin...

Regardless how expensive it get, it won't burn tons of fossil fuels. Government should just set the conditions for new power and heating infrastructure. No fossil fuels. Zero carbon. A minimum and peak capacity based on current and projected demands. Private companies can bid, but they can't change the conditions. If a private company can more cheaply and faster build massive amount of battery and use exclusively win…

The UK grid is on track to eventually becoming fossil free, although there will likely be a long 'tail' period where natural gas backup plants still operate during periods of unusually high demand and/or restricted supply.

2020 will very likely be the first year that renewables overtake fossil fuels in total electricity generated.

Here's a satisfying video of UK coal-fired power plants being demolished: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-europe-52985841

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#17

Post by Afforess »

com2kid wrote: post #14
Afforess wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no evidence nuclear waste can be disposed of safely in the medium or long term. Only technocrats and elites want more nuclear energy. Its not the will of the voting public. This is a defeat for the environment and democracy.

> There is no evidence nuclear waste can be disposed of safely in the medium or long term. Only technocrats and elites want more nuclear energy. Its not the will of the voting public. This is a defeat for the environment and democracy. You could put all the nuclear waste the US has ever produced on one football field stacked 3 stories high. Roughly 83,000 metric tons. Meanwhile we produce over 50 million tons of elec…

Comparisons of hog fecal matter to nuclear waste are tens of magnitudes of danger and complexity apart. A person can move hog waste. The most complex equipment the human race has ever designed can move nuclear waste.

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#18

Post by [deleted] »

sudosysgen wrote: post #11
Gwypaas wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Westinghouse filed for bankruptcy due to failed nuclear construction in the U.S. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/29/business/westinghouse-tos... Areva, responsible for the construction of Olkiluoto-3 in Finland on a fixed price contract. Restructured and sold all of it's reactor business except Olkiluoto-3, which it still is liable for, to EDF. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Areva

It's always astonishing how hydro and nuclear are so much better handled by SoEs like EDF or HydroQuebec that manage to turn a profit too, while private companies can never do it well.

[deleted]

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#19

Post by orangecat »

Afforess wrote: post #8
steeve wrote: post #2

Good news for the climate and the environment!

There is no evidence nuclear waste can be disposed of safely in the medium or long term. Only technocrats and elites want more nuclear energy. Its not the will of the voting public. This is a defeat for the environment and democracy.

Its not the will of the voting public.

To the extent that this is true it's because of anti-scientific FUD. The problem of nuclear waste is utterly insignificant compared to fossil fuel emissions.

Re: New nuclear plant at Sizewell set for green light

#20

Post by credit_guy »

LatteLazy wrote: post #12
rbg246 wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a job stimulus package, creating 10000 jobs and advertising this(whether or not it eventuates) is the reason for giving this project the green light.

I think you're right. Though for 2mil quid a job, we could have done better just picking people and sending them cheques imho...

It's a 10 year project. 2 mil becomes 200k per year. Still a lot, but then it's not really a purely job project. If you send 10000 people 200k per year you will end up with the same hole in your pockets of 20 billion after 10 years, but with a nuclear power plant less. And 10000 people with zero work experience.
Post reply on HN