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Nuclear energy, and especially small modular reactors, are the promise for solving the energy trilemma, because it means safe energy, energy at a fair price and clean energy, Energy Minister Sebastian Burduja said on Monday.
"My first message is a matter of confidence. We are confident that without nuclear power there can be no path to zero emissions by 2050. US Secretary John Kerry said it in Bucharest, world leaders gathered in Dubai at COP 28, where the commitment was to triple nuclear energy. Nuclear energy means zero-emission energy, it means safe energy. And we have said it every time: in the energy trilemma: we want secure energy, we want energy at a fair price, we want clean energy. We put safety first. This means that we must always have stable production in the band. We cannot give up coal, we cannot give up gas, we cannot give up nuclear power and expect that when we press the switch, the light bulb goes on. Nuclear power and especially these small modular reactors hold promise for solving this energy trilemma. It also means secure energy, it also means energy at a fair price, it also means clean energy," Burduja said at the event "Energy for the next generation" organised by the Ministry of Energy in partnership with the National Company Nuclearelectrica and RoPower Nuclear, in Doicesi, Dambovita County.
Burduja also mentioned NuScale technology, which will be used in the Doicesti project, specifying that it is a safe technology, the only one certified by the strictest regulator in the world - the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) of the US.
"The 2nd element of trust is NuScale technology. No matter how much some would like to divert us or question whether they really do their homework, whether they are honest, whether they respect Romania's Western path, they will be correct in saying: it is the only technology certified by the strictest regulator in the world - NRC [US Nuclear Regulatory Commission]. I've been to Washington, I've talked to the NRC chief, I've talked to teams of experts. In addition, the technical teams, the RoPower team, the Nuclearelectrica team, the US Embassy, we all had these discussions, and it was explained very clearly why it is a safe technology, why it is the most promising technology to be the first in the world. And today Romania has a chance to bring humanity the first nuclear-electric power plant based on small modular reactors."
In his opinion, the small reactors technology can be extended to many places similar to Doicesti in the entire region.
"There are dozens of places very similar to Doicesti throughout the region. Small reactor technology also allows economies of scale, meaning that when you have the 10th unit, the 100th unit, costs drop dramatically. And then we can extend this technology to all regions. Nuclerelectrica can take the lead for the entire region and will do so, in partnership with NuScale and the others we see. They are big companies, we are not talking about improvisation, we are talking about some of the largest companies in the world, Fluor, Samson. Of course, we are also talking about an extremely serious Romanian company, INFRA and Nova Power Groups. So, look, we have everything we need to write history."
