Nuclear generation supplies around one-quarter of world’s clean electricity

The World Nuclear Association's 2023 report revealed that globally the world's nuclear reactors generated more than 2500 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity for the sixth year running in 2022.

London: The World Nuclear Association’s 2023 report revealed that globally the world’s nuclear reactors generated more than 2500 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity for the sixth year running in 2022.

Nuclear generation supplies around one-quarter of the world’s clean electricity, second only to hydropower. However, as Jonathan Cobb, author of the new edition of World Nuclear Performance Report explained, output totalled 2545 TWh, meaning generation in 2022 was just over 100 TWh lower than in 2021, mostly as a result of events in Ukraine, France and Germany.

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The report details that six new reactors were connected to the grid in 2022: two reactors in China, and one each in Finland, Pakistan, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates. Construction started on eight reactors: five in China, two in Egypt and one in Turkey.

And in her concluding remarks in the World Nuclear Performance Report 2023, World Nuclear Association Director General Sama Bilbao y León said an increasing number of governments are recognising the value of nuclear generation to address the challenges of climate change, energy security and achieving the global sustainable development goal of providing access to affordable and clean energy for all.

She added that “unless we can turn policies into action government commitments will remain as just good intentions. We need to develop our industry self-awareness, and scan the horizon together, looking for challenges and opportunities and developing joint strategies to make the most of both. Put simply, we will either succeed together, or fail separately.”