Introducing Nuclear Power To Australia (Report)

"Introducing Nuclear Power To Australia" is a research report published by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation in May 2006.

The report proved controversial when its author, Professor John Gittus was revealed to be the head of Lloyd's of London Syndicate 1176, the biggest commercial insurer of nuclear power stations and other nuclear facilities in the world. The Lloyd's syndicate makes significant profits from the nuclear industry. This constitutes a massive conflict of interest for Prof Gittus and ANSTO, but the information is only disclosed on page 264 of the report's 267 pages. [1]

While the government claimed that the report concludes that nuclear power in Australia would be cost-competitive with coal and gas, in fact, "it looks at the cost of a new style or first of a kind reactor. And it shows that unless the Government took on more than half the financial risk of building it, nuclear energy would not be viable. It would cost twice as much as coal-fired power, and any private operator that took on the costs and risks, the report says, would quickly go into liquidation. . . The report also assumes that Government bears at least half the liability for any nuclear accident, without which Ian O. Smith at ANSTO concedes, nuclear power would be uninsurable." [2]

Other Sourcewatch Resources

• Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation
• Global Nuclear Energy Partnership
• John Howard's Nuclear Debate
• Uranium Industry Framework
• Uranium Mining In Australia
• Uranium Enrichment In Australia

External links

• Introducing Nuclear Power to Australia - An Economic Comparison, ANSTO, May 2006.
• Stephanie Peatling, "N-power plant would cost $400m to insure", Sydney Morning Herald, May 29, 2006.
• Adrian Rollins and Julie Macken, "Atomic power author in conflict", Australian Financial Review, June 1, 2006. (Sub req'd).
• Stephen Long, "Credibility of nuclear report questioned", ABC Radio National, PM, Monday, 5 June 2006.