Nuclear benefits can reach beyond energy, Necsa official claims
Nuclear technology has the potential to boost South Africa’s economy beyond the energy industry, says South African Nuclear Energy Corporation Nurad division acting group executive Ayanda Myoli.
The development of the country’s nuclear ambitions would see the expansion of industries stretching from agriculture and food to medical and manufacturing.
South Africa is currently one of the world’s largest suppliers of medical radioisotopes, through Necsa subsidiary NTP, distributing to over 50 countries and saving in excess of ten-million lives a year, he points out.
Radiochemistry and radiolabelling are also playing key roles in the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic pharmaceuticals and radiopharmaceuticals.
The nuclear build programme will also add some 27 000 jobs to the economy during the construction of the first four of six planned reactor units.
The country’s future energy mix included 9.6 GW of nuclear energy by 2030. Currently, with a 2 GW capacity at Koeberg, in the Western Cape, the nuclear industry is responsible for 3 000 direct jobs.
The industry offers 0.5 jobs a megawatt, compared with the coal industry, which produces 0.19 jobs a megawatt and the solar photovoltaic sector at 1.06 jobs for each megawatt.
With a construction time of about five to ten years, Myoli stresses that the country has to fast track the building of nuclear reactors.
While the construction costs of nuclear plants are among the highest capital costs amid power-generation plants – with total plant costs of between $3 800/kW and $4 250/kW and total capital costs between $5 100/kW and $5 700/kW – the total cost of ownership is the second-lowest at between $76/kWh and $87/kWh, with only natural gas-generated power cheaper.
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