"Ghana is planning its first nuclear energy plant: what\u2019s behind the decision"

" Ghana is planning its first nuclear energy plant: what\u2019s behind the\u00a0decision \r\n Ghana is\u00a0 considering \u00a0bids from five companies for the construction of what would be its first nuclear power plant. The companies are: France\u2019s\u00a0 EDF , US-based\u00a0 NuScale Power and Regnum Technology Group ;\u00a0 China National Nuclear Corporation ;\u00a0 South Korea\u2019s Kepco \u00a0and its subsidiary\u00a0 Korea Hydro Nuclear Power Corporation ; and\u00a0 Russia\u2019s Rosatom . The Conversation Africa\u2019s Godfred Akoto Boafo interviewed\u00a0 Seth Kofi Debrah , director, Nuclear Power Institute,\u00a0 Ghana Atomic Energy Commission , on the pros and cons of adding nuclear power to the country\u2019s power mix, and why Ghana needs to diversify and identify new energy sources. \r\n\r\n What makes the nuclear option attractive to Ghana? \r\n\r\nThe country\u2019s industrialisation ambitions, fuel constraints, limited resources, climate conditions and international commitments to climate change mitigation are among the factors driving Ghana to include nuclear power in the energy mix.\r\n\r\nNuclear power is available all year round, making it reliable. The nuclear power plant is expected to operate as a baseload plant (the production facility used to meet some or all of an area\u2019s continuous energy demand), with a capacity factor of about 92%. A conventional nuclear power plant typically\u00a0 operates \u00a0for 92% of a calendar year as compared to\u00a0 54% for natural gas \u00a0power plants,\u00a0 24% for solar and 34% \u00a0for wind power plants.\r\n\r\nDemand for electricity is growing across the nation. Currently,\u00a0 84% of the population \u00a0have access to electricity but may not be connected to the electrical grid. This means the power is available in their area but they may be unconnected due to personal circumstances.\r\n\r\nElectricity demand\u00a0 is expected to grow rapidly \u00a0on the back of electrification projects planned by successive governments, like the\u00a0 rural electrification project \u00a0(which aims at supplying electricity to all communities with a population of 500 or greater) and industrialisation initiatives (such as developing the manufacturing, alumina and iron industries).\r\n\r\nAnother reason for choosing nuclear power is that Ghana sees it as a way of supporting its industrial ambitions in the sub-region.\r\n\r\nFor example, Ghana aims to become a net exporter of electricity in the region through the\u00a0 West African Power Pool , a specialised agency of the Economic Community of West African States. It covers 14 of the 15 Ecowas countries and is intended to supply them with reliable energy at a competitive cost.\r\n\r\nAccording to the World Bank, the\u00a0 average electrification rate in west Africa \u00a0is about 42%, which means that almost half of the region\u2019s population has no access to electricity. Ghana has an 84% electrification rate.\r\n\r\nGhana believes nuclear power can help it achieve its industrial ambitions while fighting climate change.\r\n\r\nAs a\u00a0 signatory to the Paris Agreement , Ghana has an international obligation to reduce greenhouse gas. Nuclear power does not produce any of the greenhouse gases.\r\n\r\nGhana\u2019s electricity sector is dominated by thermal plants that use natural gas \u2013 a fossil fuel.\u00a0 Fossil thermal plants \u00a0make up 64% of the current energy mix. This is an over-dependence on a single fuel source. Natural gas has competing uses in different sectors, so there are frequent fuel shortages. And the price of natural gas is set by international markets, which leads to price volatility.\r\n\r\nGhana has its own source of natural gas. But these reserves are expected to start\u00a0 declining \u00a0by 2028.\r\n\r\n How dependable is the country\u2019s current energy mix? \r\n\r\nGhana\u2019s current energy mix is made up of\u00a0 1,584MW installed capacity \u00a0of hydro,\u00a0 3,758MW of thermal power plants \u00a0(mostly powered by natural gas) and\u00a0 112MW of solar generation . But the dependable capacity (the total amount of electricity that the facility can produce and deliver to the power grid) of renewables is non-existent since the source of their power generation is variable.\r\n\r\nThe dependable capacity of the energy mix of a country matters a great deal. The energy mix must have strong baseload capacity (the minimum amount of electric power needed to be supplied to the electrical grid at any given time) before renewables are considered, to ensure reliability.\r\n\r\nNo industralised nation developed its economy based on variable generation of electricity. They needed a reliable backbone that could be depended on at all times. European countries used natural gas, coal, hydro or nuclear as their baseload capacity and added on variable renewables.\r\n\r\nIf Ghana wants to exploit its natural resources and become an industrial giant, it needs sustainable, reliable and affordable baseload electricity. That can be found in a source like nuclear.\r\n\r\n What\u2019s the government\u2019s case for nuclear? \r\n\r\nGhana doesn\u2019t have many other energy options. It has good sources of hydro but most have already been exploited.\r\n\r\nPotential small dams are being affected by climate change or variability and illegal mining. And the economic justification for more small hydro plants is in doubt.\r\n\r\nGhana started its nuclear power journey as far back as the early 1960s but the idea was never realised. The nuclear power programme was\u00a0 restarted \u00a0in 2007 under former president John Agyekum Kufuor. The programme has followed the International Atomic Energy Agency\u2019s\u00a0 three-phase approach . Ghana is now at phase 2: vendor selection and site preparation.\r\n\r\nThe plant, which is expected to be constructed along the coast of the country, is planned to come online in early 2030.\r\n\r\n Given Ghana\u2019s financial constraints, is nuclear power a good idea? \r\n\r\nNuclear power plants have proven to be among the\u00a0 cheapest sources \u00a0of electricity around the world. Even though nuclear has a huge upfront financial burden, its long lifespan (over 60 years) and low running cost makes it one of the cheapest baseload sources of electricity.\r\n\r\nAround the world, advanced countries\u00a0 seek financial support \u00a0for their nuclear projects. There are various\u00a0 models \u00a0to finance nuclear power plant procurement, including the option of a public private partnership.\r\n\r\n How about nuclear waste and the cost of dealing with it? \r\n\r\nGhana already operates one of the few\u00a0 radioactive waste storage facilities \u00a0in Africa. This means that when Ghana builds a nuclear power plant it will already have capacity in nuclear waste management.\r\n\r\nRadioactive waste management, which deals with nuclear waste, is an issue that needs to be addressed in the early stages of planning a nuclear plant. This is evident in the\u00a0 International Atomic Energy Agency milestone approach \u00a0which most countries follow to develop a nuclear programme. It shows all the 19 infrastructure issues that need to be addressed throughout the three-phased approach.\r\n\r\nIt is the only power plant that is responsible in dealing with its waste after its lifetime. In effect, it is the only power plan that plans and pays for its waste management during operation and post operation with dedicated funds for waste management.\r\n\r\nThe costs of managing nuclear waste and the nuclear power plant\u2019s decommissioning at the end of its operating life are included in the nuclear power plant tariff. This is a safety requirement as enshrined in the\u00a0 International Atomic Energy Agency safety standards . Furthermore, the country of origin has strict regulations about decommissioning which have to be adhered to by nuclear power plant owners.\r\n\r\nOne of the major concerns by the public is the treatment or storage of the high level spent fuel that is sometimes referred to as \u201cwaste\u201d. High level spent fuel is the fuel that has been used up through irradiation. These used fuels usually have over\u00a0 90% usable fuel \u00a0that can be re-used through reprocessing."

"Ghana is planning its first nuclear energy plant: what\u2019s behind the decision"

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