Swiss nuclear shutdown to cost $22.5bn: study

November 24, 2011

Switzerland's five reactors will not be replaced when they come to the end of their operation

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The Leibstadt nuclear power plant is seen near Leibstadt, northern Switzerland. Shutting down Switzerland's five nuclear power stations will cost about 20.7 billion Swiss francs (16.8 billion euros, $22.5 billion) and take about 20 years, Swiss authorities said.

Shutting down Switzerland's five nuclear power stations will cost about 20.7 billion Swiss francs (16.8 billion euros, $22.5 billion) and take about 20 years, Swiss authorities said on Thursday.

A study published by the Federal Office of Energy said that the cost had risen by 10.0 percent compared with a 2006 estimate.

The most expensive part of the process will be the long-term management of radioactive waste, it said.

The Swiss parliament approved a phased exit from nuclear energy at the end of September, six months after the Fukushima plant catastrophe in Japan.

Strong to nuclear led to a recommendation that Switzerland's five reactors not be replaced when they come to the end of their operation in 2034.

A huge earthquake and tsunami on March 11 knocked out cooling systems at Fukushima, sending reactors into meltdown and leaking radiation in what was the world's worst since Chernobyl in 1986.

(c) 2011 AFP

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djr
Nov 24, 2011

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The Chinese are working on a way to recycle spent uranium - which they hope will increase the supply of fuel for the plants they are planning to build. I wonder if they could help the Swiss by either recycling the spent fuel, or adapting the Swiss plants to recycle the fuel. It is probably not politically viable to do the latter. Perhaps China will end up buying the world's spent uranium - and solving a big head ache for us. Does any one know if this might be feasible? http://www.greeno...ar-fuel/
rawa1
Nov 25, 2011

Rank: 1 / 5 (1)
I don't see any problem, when they implement cold fusion fast. The nuclear energy is very dirty, even the reprocessing the uranium fuel is dangerous and very unfriendly environmentally.
http://en.wikiped.../Red_oil

Under situation, when the cold fusion is ready and working the building of new nuclear plants is just plain silly (..until you don't plan the global nuclear war, indeed)...
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