NUCLEAR POWER: IMPERATIVE OR IMPRACTICAL?

Emmett O’Connell, Chairman Great Western Mining Corporation

As nuclear power usage expands rapidly across the globe, demand for the World’s limited uranium resources Will increase, pushing up the price for uranium ore. Niamh MacSweeney reports.

The state agency Forfás has warned Ireland will face a liquid fuel crisis in the next 10 to 15 years and may have to develop a nuclear power station to meet its electricity requirements. Ireland is now more dependent on imported oil than other European country.

Renewable Energy

Spiraling fuel cost and the long term implications, is a growing concern for all of us. While in the future there may indeed be greater use of renewable energy sources such as wind, biomas and tidal energy, is that going to be enough to feed our growing fuel demands? Will we be faced with the possibility of a nuclear power station being built here in the future. Emmett O'Connell, is chairman of Great Western Mining Corporation. The company which has gold and uranium claims in Nevada recently launched on the London Ofex market.

Nuclear Power

The Irish-American is not a promoter of nuclear power but he argues that if people continue to ignore the longterm implications nuclear power might be the only option available. “I think it is problematical that nuclear power is even commercially realistic. But the point is when people have to choose between ignoring the long term costs, ignoring the disposal costs which are 50 to 100 years in the future, then nuclear power can be attractive.”

Cutbacks

He argues that people are going to have to make a conscious effort to turn off electrical appliances, but that when it comes to making the choice it is unlikely that people will give up their lifestyles. “People will not change their lifestyles therefore the future for nuclear power is beginning to look very attractive again despite its drawbacks and if that is so and I’m correct in that assumption then the price of uranium is in for a major move upwards,” he says.

Future Fuel Prices

According to O’Connell businesses have to “get real” very quickly and stop wasting energy. He maintains that the simplest way to do this is to use massive instillation on an already existing facility and find more efficient electrical motives. “There is tremendous waste of energy at the present time so the first thing to do is cutback. It’s going to be a very rare building that’s built in the future without proper instillation. We aren’t going to see these massive glass block structures any more with tremendous heat loss,” he explains.

Alternative Sources

O’Connell agrees that that is the easy part. The more difficult challenge will be finding alterative sources of power. “Lets say you cutback and save 20% on the economy, you gain another 10% by the use of alternative fuels, so now you are at 30% savings. That would make a lot more sense then building a power plant but people will be very slow to cutback. The same applies to business use and personal use they must cut back, cut down on fuel bills and then make use of alternative sources wherever possible. Businesses have got to look at energy costs as a major function not as an incidental function in business,” he concludes.