Nuclear Energy Now Good?

[calsdad]

It's the largest deployment in history — Meta, Amazon and Google team up to produce 1 million MW

Amazon, Meta, and Google have come together to make a pledge towards the largest deployment ever, powered by nuclear energy. How have tech giants made the pledge?

www.ecoportal.net

For the past couple of decades all I've been hearing from the greenies is how bad nuclear energy is. Chernobyl, 3 mile island, yadda yadda.

Now several big tech companies have joined together, pledging to work together to generate one million MW by 2050. And it's now green because it has an almost zero 'carbon footprint.'

I couldn't care less about being green, but I'll welcome anything that lowers my electric bills. He'll, if throwing virgins into volcanoes lowered electric costs I'd support that! Lol

Any thoughts about this from the NES hive mind?

LOL.

Good luck finding any virgins. If we're going to depend on that we are all going freeze to death in the dark.

 

[In God We Trust]

Bearing in mind that Gates is Microsoft, not Google...

I thought they were connected somehow. If not, thank you for the correction.

 

[FalArAk]

I thought they were connected somehow. If not, thank you for the correction.

I think Alphabet dwarfs Microsoft.

Google was so big, they split it up lol

 

[Mesatchornug]

I thought they were connected somehow. If not, thank you for the correction.

Google was Sergei Brin and Larry Page. They are all self dealing jerks who imagine they're saving the world. But definitely different.

 

[silversquirrel]

Rosatom (the Russians) have a pretty good package deal to sell nuke plants around the world.

They Design the plant.
They provide manufacturing of the components (reactor vessels and stuff... not easy)
They provide construction of the plant. Engineers. Equipment.
They supply the fuel.
They provide and train operators.
Most importantly they finance the whole thing. Pretty good if your a 3rd world shithole who want to have electricity.

We can't get our shit together to do any one of those things without enormous amounts of red tape.

 

[jct61765]

It's the largest deployment in history — Meta, Amazon and Google team up to produce 1 million MW

Amazon, Meta, and Google have come together to make a pledge towards the largest deployment ever, powered by nuclear energy. How have tech giants made the pledge?

www.ecoportal.net

For the past couple of decades all I've been hearing from the greenies is how bad nuclear energy is. Chernobyl, 3 mile island, yadda yadda.

Now several big tech companies have joined together, pledging to work together to generate one million MW by 2050. And it's now green because it has an almost zero 'carbon footprint.'

I couldn't care less about being green, but I'll welcome anything that lowers my electric bills. He'll, if throwing virgins into volcanoes lowered electric costs I'd support that! Lol

Any thoughts about this from the NES hive mind?

Ya, I think there’s plenty of virgins on NES.

 

[Varmint]

Data centers and AI are sucking up more energy everyday. Tech companies are sexy and $$$. It was only a matter of time before they made the push for cheap sustainable power and began investing in rebranding nuclear. Private sector needs will always win out, and theyll use their money and influence to convince the greenies that its what they wanted all along. In the end we'll all be better off for it, just needed enough necessity to get tech giants invested enough to open up the dam so to speak.

Three Mile Island nuclear power plant to return as Microsoft signs 20-year, 835MW AI data center PPA

Site expected to return in 2028, in huge nuclear deal

www.datacenterdynamics.com

It's a very strange choice to restart an old super expensive and relatively unsafe reactor instead of building a new SMR power plant. Maybe it's the easiest way for MS to get permits?

 

[firestorm]

It's a very strange choice to restart an old super expensive and relatively unsafe reactor instead of building a new SMR power plant. Maybe it's the easiest way for MS to get permits?

Honestly it is probably a lot cheaper to restart a plant that hasn't started decommissioning yet than it is to build new. All the systems are there, you just need to go through a maintenance cycle to make sure everything is working well enough to put fuel back in the pot. The higher operating costs over the next 20 years are likely to be less than the cost to build new. Bill gates is apparently bankrolling a new design, but outside of that I have seen no indication that any actually new, as in not on the location of an already functioning plant, plants would be allowed. We haven't had one of those since the 80's.

 

[Spanz]

Honestly it is probably a lot cheaper to restart a plant that hasn't started decommissioning yet than it is to build new. All the systems are there, you just need to go through a maintenance cycle to make sure everything is working well enough to put fuel back in the pot. The higher operating costs over the next 20 years are likely to be less than the cost to build new. Bill gates is apparently bankrolling a new design, but outside of that I have seen no indication that any actually new, as in not on the location of an already functioning plant, plants would be allowed. We haven't had one of those since the 80's.

is it? i was wondering about metal fatique and microcracking.
there is a limited lifetime for such things. not sure if it is 20 years or 200 years. but stuff fails.

ALSO old systems are crap systems. would not be trusting a 20 year old computer!

 

[firestorm]

is it? i was wondering about metal fatique and microcracking.
there is a limited lifetime for such things. not sure if it is 20 years or 200 years. but stuff fails.

ALSO old systems are crap systems. would not be trusting a 20 year old computer!

Some of these plants that are running right now are far older, but looking at the overruns and red tape nonsense that held Vogtle up for so long I am certain that a plant turning back on is cheaper. They are doing the same in Michigan at Pallisades. They had started the decommissioning already and decided to fix it instead. Many of these plants were not turned off because they were unsafe, just expensive compared to other options. As for the old computer systems they do in many cases use the absolute best of 1960's or 70's tech, I have been in places that have nearly irreplaceable consoles that control absolutely critical things because the parts and expertise to make them are obsolete and there is no telling how long it would take to get a new one made.

 

[Parker Schreiber]

It's a very strange choice to restart an old super expensive and relatively unsafe reactor instead of building a new SMR power plant. Maybe it's the easiest way for MS to get permits?

Number of small modular reactors currently producing electricity commercially in the world -- 1, if you count a Russian barge with naval reactors. Number licensed by the US or the EU -- zero.

SMRs show promise technically, but solving the technical challenges wouldn't solve the NIMBY challenges. Microsoft would need to site 2-3 SMR's to match the available output of TMI. There's also the pioneer problem with new designs. I mentioned Vogtle 3 and 4 earlier in the thread, which used Westinghouse's "new" modular AP1000 design. They took 14 years to build, came in at roughly quadruple the original estimated cost, and forced Westinghouse into bankruptcy. Westinghouse is now pitching a smaller version, the AP300. Needless to say, people are skeptical.

Bill Gates himself is a not just a proponent of SMRs, but he's putting his money and his time where his mouth is. He's chairman and a primary investor of TerraPower, which has started building its first SMR in Wyoming. The goal is to have it online in 2030, if they've actually solved the materials challenges of using molten salt. TMI should be running a couple of years before that.

 

[240Geezer]

About time. It's almost at the point I would save money running my house off of my gasoline generator

Don't think I haven't thought of that.

 

[M1911]

If you really believe in being carbon neutral then you should be pro nuclear.

 

[HARRYM]

Let's think about this for a minute......close to 70% of HS "graduates" are not "proficient" at the grade reading and math level. Do we really want these "graduates" sitting at a control panel of a Nuclear Power Station.

 

[grey]

If you really believe in being carbon neutral then you should be pro nuclear.

Not carbon neutral. Definitely pro low energy costs. That would be a huge advantage for the US. If that means being pro nuclear, ok. I'm also pro natural gas and pro coal. Whatever it takes

 

[Bigfudge16]

Let's think about this for a minute......close to 70% of HS "graduates" are not "proficient" at the grade reading and math level. Do we really want these "graduates" sitting at a control panel of a Nuclear Power Station.

Not a good enough reason to not move forward. Schools will create training programs specifically for these jobs. Cant stop attempting to be better in the future because we suck in the present.

The money forces the progress.

 

[grey]

Let's think about this for a minute......close to 70% of HS "graduates" are not "proficient" at the grade reading and math level. Do we really want these "graduates" sitting at a control panel of a Nuclear Power Station.

Pick from the other 30%. Problem solved

 

[Bigfudge16]

It's a very strange choice to restart an old super expensive and relatively unsafe reactor instead of building a new SMR power plant. Maybe it's the easiest way for MS to get permits?

Better optics? Easier permitting process for sure. Both affect timeline which is likely MS' big concern given their power needs right this second.

Fire up something while we draw and permit a future reactor.

 

[HARRYM]

Pick from the other 30%. Problem solved

"Picking" these days has become a bit difficult.

 

[HARRYM]

Not a good enough reason to not move forward. Schools will create training programs specifically for these jobs. Cant stop attempting to be better in the future because we suck in the present.

The money forces the progress.

I am not a strong believer in Americans have the will to step up and fix anything.

 

[Mark from ?]

Not carbon neutral. Definitely pro low energy costs. That would be a huge advantage for the US. If that means being pro nuclear, ok. I'm also pro natural gas and pro coal. Whatever it takes

This. Not a fan of Coal...but We are the Saudi Arabia of Nat Gas here......and if the energy prices in FL are any indication of what Nuke does (I think FL runs a lot of Nuke) bring it on.

My 55 dollar electric bill this month says so.....100 dollars with full AC on 24/7......gets too cold in here in the summer sometimes.....have to take a walk outside to warm up.

Or you can take the Healy plan of sit in the dark and freeze in the winter or sweat in the summer, and still pay $250 a month for her TDS on no pipelines and filling farm fields with solar panels that produce 1/16 the amount of the energy....well....during the day only.

 

[Mark from ?]

I am not a strong believer in Politicians have the will to step up and fix anything.

FIFY.....

 

[M1911]

Not carbon neutral. Definitely pro low energy costs. That would be a huge advantage for the US. If that means being pro nuclear, ok. I'm also pro natural gas and pro coal. Whatever it takes

Coal is terrible for the environment. The damage starts with the mining, then the smoke from the stack and the released radiation, and finally the fly ash that needs to be disposed. Natural gas is far better. But nuclear is the best for the environment.

 

[M1911]

Let's think about this for a minute......close to 70% of HS "graduates" are not "proficient" at the grade reading and math level. Do we really want these "graduates" sitting at a control panel of a Nuclear Power Station.

The US Navy has been running nuclear reactors for many decades.

 

[M1911]

Not a good enough reason to not move forward. Schools will create training programs specifically for these jobs. Cant stop attempting to be better in the future because we suck in the present.

The money forces the progress.

Every year a number of fully trained and experienced nuclear operators retire from the US Navy. I suspect more than a few would be interested in operating a civilian power plant.

 

[SpaceCritter]

"Picking" these days has become a bit difficult.

That tide seems to be changing (hopefully, anyway).

 

[HARRYM]

Pick from the other 30%. Problem solved

This just happened, and is 1000% true.

My Mother passed this past November. Her bank account she was the primary holder and I am the secondary holder. When she passed I was locked out. I sent in her death certificate and my complete legal identification. I can take the paperwork in and close the account but have yet to do so as final bills are pending.

So, I need bank statements from 2024 and any 1099INT for 2024. So, locked out I get a hold off the bank and the department who handles deceased accounts. I provide all my information, again, as well as my deceased Mother's bank information.

The Woman says.....OK.......I do need to send a text to the primary account holder with a security code before we can move forward.

I am silent for a moment....I then say.....listen, who knew you could take your cell phone to heaven but now that I know you can I will ditch my Pixel 6 and take a Z flip with me.

The Woman is silent....then speaks with a different tone as she knows I am mocking her stupidity......

I am not convinced that people who have zero common sense, lack of awareness and or IQ, can be prevented from sitting at a Nuclear Reactor Control Panel.

And let me assure you, these days folks like this Women are becoming the norm, not the exception.

 

[grey]

This just happened, and is 1000% true.

My Mother passed this past November. Her bank account she was the primary holder and I am the secondary holder. When she passed I was locked out. I sent in her death certificate and my complete legal identification. I can take the paperwork in and close the account but have yet to do so as final bills are pending.

So, I need bank statements from 2024 and any 1099INT for 2024. So, locked out I get a hold off the bank and the department who handles deceased accounts. I provide all my information, again, as well as my deceased Mother's bank information.

The Woman says.....OK.......I do need to send a text to the primary account holder with a security code before we can move forward.

I am silent for a moment....I then say.....listen, who knew you could take your cell phone to heaven but now that I know you can I will ditch my Pixel 6 and take a Z flip with me.

The Woman is silent....then speaks with a different tone as she knows I am mocking her stupidity......

I am not convinced that people who have zero common sense, lack of awareness and or IQ, can be prevented from sitting at a Nuclear Reactor Control Panel.

And let me assure you, these days folks like this Women are becoming the norm, not the exception.

Did you ever see how much low to mid level bankers make? But yeah I wouldn't hire a nuke tech from a bank

 

[HARRYM]

Did you ever see how much low to mid level bankers make? But yeah I wouldn't hire a nuke tech from a bank

Is the average IQ for most higher or lower than it was say 20 or 30 years ago....

 

[Varmint]

Let's think about this for a minute......close to 70% of HS "graduates" are not "proficient" at the grade reading and math level. Do we really want these "graduates" sitting at a control panel of a Nuclear Power Station.

They’ll be delivering pizzas to the front gate.