Science Smrs Nuclear
Mr David Turk, the Deputy Secretary of the United States’ Department of Energy, is urging Ghana to opt for Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) that offer more benefits for the nuclear programme.
SMRs are advanced nuclear reactors, which have a power capacity of up to 300 megawatts per unit, about one-third of the generating capacity of traditional nuclear power reactors and can produce a large amount of low-carbon electricity.
He explained that SMRs were newer generations of reactors offering many benefits including size, cost, and construction period and produced a large amount of low-carbon electricity.
At a symposium on nuclear energy and climate on Friday, Mr Turk said considering the option on SMRs Ghana could harness that potential and establish a hub for the manufacturing of that technology for the rest of the continent.
The symposium, organized by the School of Physical and Mathematics Science, University of Ghana, in collaboration with the US Embassy, served as a brainstorming section for research ideas on clean energy as the country inches towards energy transition.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, last month, approved the inclusion of nuclear power into the country’s power generation mix, indicating its readiness to go nuclear.
The decision is in line with global collective commitment to ensure sustainable power to enhance rapid industrialization and propel economic growth.
The announcement of Government’s approval, called the National Position, means the country is the first in the subregion to commit to a nuclear power program and provides enough signal to the international community and investors that it is a venture worth funding.
It is one of the key 19 infrastructure issues under phase one of the programme, a guideline set by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
“I strongly believe that innovation drives more cost-effective deployment of clean energy everywhere, and the large investments in small modular reactors and other modern technologies in the US should soon result in safer and more affordable nuclear power everywhere, including our key African partners such as Ghana,” Mr Turk said.
Being a former Deputy Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, he said SMRs were designed to generate affordable electric power and its components and the systems could be shop fabricated then transported as modules to the sites for installation as demand arises.
Mr Turk said the peaceful exploitation of nuclear power was in consonance with the global collective commitment to the sustainable availability of power to propel economic growth.
America recognized Africa’s efforts to address its energy access, affordability, and security goals, while diversifying its energy mix, building sustainable supply chains, and protecting the continent’s ecosystems and diverse natural resources, he said.
The goals are central to the prosperity of Africans as well as help to tackle the global climate crisis.
“Africa’s share of energy use and greenhouse gas emissions per capita is extremely low, yet Africa and her people stand to suffer from some of the most severe effects of climate change,” he stated.
Under the auspices of President Biden’s Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE), Mr Turk said the United States would continue to work closely with African countries to identify and deploy clean energy technologies at scale.
The Department of Energy and its 17 national laboratories contribute to PREPARE by collaborating with other US federal agencies to support foreign, national and local governments’ efforts to assess and embed climate risks into their budgets, plans, policies, and operations.
This is with the ultimate objective of translating priorities into bankable projects.
“This is done with a focus on locally led adaptation that addresses African concerns for ensuring a just energy transition, and which enables vulnerable communities and affected populations to meaningfully participate in and lead adaptation-related decisions,” he said.
Professor Boateng Onwona-Agyeman, the Provost of the College of Basic and Applied Sciences, University of Ghana, said the county’s quest to transition to clean energy would need investment in research and development.
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