…the West (Europe as a first) had 20 years to prepare to be independent (they could have invested some euros into researching alternative energy resources in case in the long run issues came up) but no…they were lazy and wanted cheap stuff so they went bargaining with Russia, that way they sealed their fate.
Now everyone is paranoid and anxious at the what if’s (Russia stopping gas flows ecc…) but they only have their governments to blame, they created this, now they need to move their asses (heard that Deutschland?) to find alternatives.
Well, we saw how well this turned out with oil and gas supplies. Don’t hold your breath.
Well it’s certainly a risk; but we’re definitely not as exposed than other countries can be with gas. At least in France:
In that case, we should invest in refining our breeder reactors into production plants that can be made in series. We could then use Uranium 238, which is of 99.3% concentration in the uranium mined. We have piles and piles of the stuff.
3 comments
…the West (Europe as a first) had 20 years to prepare to be independent (they could have invested some euros into researching alternative energy resources in case in the long run issues came up) but no…they were lazy and wanted cheap stuff so they went bargaining with Russia, that way they sealed their fate.
Now everyone is paranoid and anxious at the what if’s (Russia stopping gas flows ecc…) but they only have their governments to blame, they created this, now they need to move their asses (heard that Deutschland?) to find alternatives.
Well, we saw how well this turned out with oil and gas supplies. Don’t hold your breath.
Well it’s certainly a risk; but we’re definitely not as exposed than other countries can be with gas. At least in France:
https://www.sfen.org/vos-questions/en-france-les-ressources-en-uranium-sont-elles-suffisantes-pour-assurer-notre-independance-energetique/
1. 2 years electricity production reserves
2. [Orano has participations in reserves in Canada, Kazakhstan, Niger](https://www.orano.group/fr/l-expertise-nucleaire/tour-des-implantations/mines-d-uranium). 30 years in reserves of raw uranium
3. World estimates are at 250 year reserves
4. [Orano has enrichment facilities, can be independent on the whole supply chain](https://www.orano.group/en/orano-across-the-world/france)
Apart from second-level risks (as Russia can’t be our backup at the moment), all I see is market share opportunities for Orano group.
That’s the beauty of Uranium: you can have vast reserves because of its tremendous energy density.
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On another topic, 250 year reserves do not account for consumption growth, nor for converting the whole world off coal into nuclear. ([try doing that with wind or solar, ](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/energy/a25576543/renewable-limits-materials-dutch-ministry-infrastructure/) and see that [we’ll have to mine just about every metal on earth](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590332220302980))
In that case, we should invest in refining our breeder reactors into production plants that can be made in series. We could then use Uranium 238, which is of 99.3% concentration in the uranium mined. We have piles and piles of the stuff.