Nuclear (fission) generation is more expensive - but you have to compare apples-to-apples. Electricity production will be a mix of sources. Renewable / Sustainable tends to be variable - think solar, wind, and even hydroelectric to some degree. Exotic technologies like geothermal (land or sea based) may help with this, but we are a long way from having substantial production capability. Base load generation today largely consists of creating heat, boiling water, and spinning a turbine. We have decided that creating heat by burning carbon-based fuels has unacceptable externalities.Given that, doesn't research and development into making fission safer and more affordable make sense?
skitout|3 years ago
But current technologies seem enough to have a resilient cost effective grid without nuclear or coal (A diversified mixed of renewable energies with peak production higher than peak consumption + energy efficiency + demand response + thermal storage + electricity storage (different battery technologies and other options)). The level of uncertainty attached to this scenario is lower than for next gen nuclear (mainly for the cost, but also for security, or the waste). And more importantly, renewable energies and energy efficiency are ready for a fast deployment.