Modular Reactors Touted for N.M.
By Hobbs News-Sun on Fri, Apr 29, 2011
HOBBS — New Mexico is a perfect place to begin using modular nuclear reactors, an assistant energy secretary said.
“The smaller units don’t require the cooling systems that bigger plants do,” said John Kelly, the U.S. Energy Department’s deputy assistant secretary for Nuclear Reactor Technologies. “There is less water usage and they can be looked at in places like New Mexico.”
Unlike traditional reactors, modular units require only about 15 acres of space and are more completely contained, reducing the threat of pipe breaks that could lead to radiation leaks, Kelly said Thursday, the final day of a two-day conference in Hobbs on nuclear energy.
“They can use passive cooling systems and can withstand long-term loss of power,” he said.
The modular reactors also produce less power — about 250 megawatts per unit, Kelly said.
“We see nuclear power as remaining one of the key energy strategies in the U.S. energy portfolio,” he said. “Nuclear must be a part of the energy portfolio. We want to re-establish the U.S. as a leader in the nuclear field.”
One company looking at modular reactors is Babcock and Wilcox Nuclear Energy.
Kevin Butterfield, director of business development for the company, said it hopes to have the first modular reactor permitted and working by 2020.
Getting a permit is the time-consuming part, Butterfield said. Construction takes about three years, he said.
The company wants to develop modular plants in such a way that the central core could be manufactured in a facility that could produce dozens or hundreds of them each year to meet world energy demands, Butterfield said.
He said his company’s plan calls for a facility with a lifespan of 40 years that could be expanded in increments as demands for energy increase.
HOBBS — New Mexico is a perfect place to begin using modular nuclear reactors, an assistant energy secretary said.
“The smaller units don’t require the cooling systems that bigger plants do,” said John Kelly, the U.S. Energy Department’s deputy assistant secretary for Nuclear Reactor Technologies. “There is less water usage and they can be looked at in places like New Mexico.”
Unlike traditional reactors, modular units require only about 15 acres of space and are more completely contained, reducing the threat of pipe breaks that could lead to radiation leaks, Kelly said Thursday, the final day of a two-day conference in Hobbs on nuclear energy.
“They can use passive cooling systems and can withstand long-term loss of power,” he said.
The modular reactors also produce less power — about 250 megawatts per unit, Kelly said.
“We see nuclear power as remaining one of the key energy strategies in the U.S. energy portfolio,” he said. “Nuclear must be a part of the energy portfolio. We want to re-establish the U.S. as a leader in the nuclear field.”
One company looking at modular reactors is Babcock and Wilcox Nuclear Energy.
Kevin Butterfield, director of business development for the company, said it hopes to have the first modular reactor permitted and working by 2020.
Getting a permit is the time-consuming part, Butterfield said. Construction takes about three years, he said.
The company wants to develop modular plants in such a way that the central core could be manufactured in a facility that could produce dozens or hundreds of them each year to meet world energy demands, Butterfield said.
He said his company’s plan calls for a facility with a lifespan of 40 years that could be expanded in increments as demands for energy increase.
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