[bluGill]

Nuclear is so expensive the only reason anyone builds them is governments wants a source of nuclear trained people around for military purposes (either bombs or navy ships).

Battery backup isn't a needed as much as many thing in the real world. Those gas power plants we already have are not going anywhere, so we still use them when there isn't much wind. Though battery is something we should be building instead (and are).

[xattt]

Wait, what? There are also a number of countries that operate nuclear plants purely for civilian electricity production. Military applications are not the primary motivator.

Instead, civilian energy demands and energy independence are the motivating factors. Look at how Ontario leveraged its electricity supply in the early days of the trade war.

[bluGill]

I said build not operate. The world situation has changed, 50 years ago nuclear power was a good idea to build. If you have a working nuclear power plant I'd generally keep operating it, and do small upgrades over time. However building a new one is something you should only do if you have military needs. (note that showing off is sometimes a military need)

[xattt]

CANDU 9 and Advanced CANDU reactors were developed and built during a time when Canada had no active military nuclear program.

[bluGill]

both cancled actording to wikipedia thus proving my point. both were started near the end of when of when making a civial nuke might make sense

[xattt]

There are 12 CANDU 9 units: Bruce A & B, and Darlington. Both either undergone recent refurbishment or refurbishment underway.

[natmaka]

We even know how to feed gas turbine with hydrogen, and how to make hydrogen thanks to renewables' overproduction ("green hydrogen").

[mndgs]

Nonsense, by that logic Lithuania should have been a #2 military power long time ago (having built nukes from a civil nuclear reactor) (it used to operate #2 largest nuclear reactor in the world, now it would be #4).

[laurencerowe]

I mean Lithuania's nuclear reactors were built while it was part of the #2 military power in the world and have since been shut down.

https://world-nuclear.org/information-library/country-profil...

[cyberax]

In most of Europe, nuclear is cheaper than anything else but coal, natgas, and classic hydro.

When you also add the cost of battery backup.

Spain and Portugal have just experienced the first taste of that fact.

[laurencerowe]

Most of the cost of nuclear is in construction so extending the life of existing nuclear power stations as long as possible makes sense. However new nuclear in Europe has been much more expensive and even France has lost the ability to build new nuclear capacity cheaply.