physics

Nuclear energy policy by country

Nuclear energy policy by country is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Nuclear energy policy by country rather than just read about it. In short: National nuclear energy policy is a national policy concerning some or all aspects of nuclear energy, such as mining for nuclear fuel, extraction and processing of nuclear fuel from the ore, generating electricity by nuclear power, enriching and storing spent nuclear fuel and nuclear fuel reprocessing. Nuclear energy policies often include the regulation of energy use and standards relating to the nuclear fuel cycle.

Key takeaways

Nuclear energy policy by country belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Nuclear energy policy by country to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Nuclear energy policy by country from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

National nuclear energy policy is a national policy concerning some or all aspects of nuclear energy, such as mining for nuclear fuel, extraction and processing of nuclear fuel from the ore, generating electricity by nuclear power, enriching and storing spent nuclear fuel and nuclear fuel reprocessing. Nuclear energy policies often include the regulation of energy use and standards relating to the nuclear fuel cycle. Nuclear power stations operate in 31 countries. China has 32 new reactors under construction, and there are also a considerable number of new reactors being built in South Korea, India, and Russia. At the same time, at least 100 older and smaller reactors will "most probably be closed over the next 10-15 years". So the expanding nuclear programs in Asia are balanced by retirements of aging plants and nuclear reactor phase-outs. Global nuclear electricity generation in 2012 was at its lowest level since 1999. Following the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan, Germany has permanently shut down eight of its reactors and pledged to close the rest by 2022. The Italians have voted overwhelmingly to keep their country non-nuclear. Switzerland and Spain have banned the construction of new reactors. Japan's prime minister has called for a dramatic reduction in Japan's reliance on nuclear power. Taiwan's president did the same. Mexico has sidelined construction of 10 reactors in favor of developing natural-gas-fired plants. Belgium planned to phase out its nuclear plants by 2025, later postponed by 10 years to 2035. As of 2012, countries such as Australia, Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Israel, Serbia, Malaysia, and Norway have no nuclear power reactors and remain opposed to nuclear power.

List

Africa

Algeria

Egypt

In November 2015 and March 2017 Egypt signed preliminary agreements with Russian nuclear company Rosatom for a first VVER-1200 unit at El Dabaa to start in 2024. Discussions continue for final approval.

Ghana

Ghana has research reactors, but no power plants.

Kenya

Kenya aims to build a 1,000 MWe nuclear power plant by 2030.

Libya

Morocco

Nigeria

South Africa

South Africa is the only country in Africa with a commercial nuclear power plant and it currently has an expansion policy.

Asia

Bangladesh

Bangladesh considered building a nuclear power plant for the first time in 1961. Since then, several feasibility studies have been carried out, affirming the feasibility of the project. In 1963 the Rooppur site was selected. More recently, in 2001 Bangladesh adopted a national Nuclear Power Action Plan. On 24 June 2007, Bangladesh's government announced it will build a nuclear power plant to meet electricity shortages. The first nuclear power plant with a generation capacity between 700 and 1,000 MW will be installed by 2015 at Rooppur in Pabna district.

China

As of March 2014, China has 20 operating reactors, and 28 reactors under construction. Additional reactors are planned, providing 58 GWe of capacity by 2020.

Gulf states Six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Oman) have announced that the Council is commissioning a study on the peaceful use of nuclear energy. In February 2007 they agreed with the IAEA to cooperate on a feasibility study for a regional nuclear power and desalination program. The United Arab Emirates adopted a national policy on nuclear energy in July 2008 and a national nuclear energy law on 4 October 2009. According to the law and the policy document, the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation was established. Memorandums of understanding on cooperation in peaceful uses of nuclear energy are signed with France, the United States and the United Kingdom. In December 2009, the UAE decided to build a nuclear power plant with four APR1400 reactors. The first reactor to be developed by the Korea Electric Power came online in 2017. The plant is located at Barakah, 53 kilometres (33 mi) from Ruwais. On 29 March 2008, Bahrain signed a memorandum of understanding on nuclear energy with the United States. In 2010 the Kuwait National Nuclear Energy Committee and the Russian company Rosatom signed a memorandum of understanding on the use of nuclear energy.

India

India has 20 reactors operating and 6 reactors under construction. India has encountered effective local anti-nuclear opposition, growing national wariness about foreign nuclear reactors, and a nuclear liability controversy that threatens to prevent new reactor imports. There have been mass protests against the French-backed 9900 MW Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project in Maharashtra and the 2000 MW Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant in Tamil Nadu. The state government of West Bengal state has also refused permission to a proposed 6000 MW facility near the town of Haripur that intended to host six Russian reactors.

Indonesia

In the mid-1990s, Indonesia conducted a feasibility study into constructing 12 nuclear power plants. The plan was postponed due to criticism from environmentalists and the Asian regional economic crisis in 1997. In 2006, Indonesian Government announced a plan to build its first major nuclear power plant on Muria peninsula, Jepara district, Central Java by 2015. However, this decision is not final yet. This plan is heavily criticized by environmental organisations. In June 2007 was announced that in Gorontalo will be set up 70 MW floating nuclear power plant of Russian origin.

Iran

In the mid-1970s, Iran started construction of two PWR units at [Bushehr], but the project was suspended in 1979. In 1994, Russia agreed to complete unit 1 of Bushehr nuclear power plant and it was expected to be completed late in 2007. Also second reactor is planned at Bushehr. It also announced that a new nuclear power plant is to be built at Darkhovin in Khūzestān Province, where two plants were about to be constructed in the 1970s. Currently, Iran has reported that a power plant at Bushehr is operational. Iran plans to build at least 19 more reactors with cumulative capacity of 20,000 MW by 2025 out of which at least six reactors are expected to be operational by 2020

Israel

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Nuclear energy policy by country

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Nuclear energy policy by country claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Nuclear energy policy by country before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Nuclear energy policy by country ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Nuclear energy policy by country

In research: Nuclear energy policy by country appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Nuclear energy policy by country in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Nuclear energy policy by country is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Nuclear energy policy, Nuclear power by country, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Nuclear energy policy by country outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Nuclear energy policy by country in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Nuclear energy policy by country means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Nuclear energy policy by country out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Nuclear energy policy by country in simple terms?

Why does Nuclear energy policy by country matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Nuclear energy policy by country?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Nuclear energy policy by country.