Page 41 - bne monthly magazine October 2022

bne October 2022 Cover story I 41
CEO has stressed that Slovakia is not dependent solely on Russia anymore.
“We launched an international tender for new supplies of nuclear fuel a month ago”, Strycek told reporters as the recently authorised new nuclear reactor at the Mochovce NPP began to load fuel.
French Framatore and American Westinghouse are expected to enter the tender besides TVEL, the current supplier.
Westinghouse, however, does not currently produce the fuel needed
by the Slovak nuclear power plants
at Mochovce and Bohunice and it would also likely be more expensive. Nevertheless, Strycek said Slovenske Elektrarne have been in touch with other VVER-440 operators and that Westinghouse had already developed and tested fuel for these type of reactors.
Both countries have been tied to Soviet nuclear technology since they were satellites of the Soviet Union and even today the Russian nuclear lobby is still a powerful voice in their energy politics. As recently as last year a large portion of the Czech political establishment, including the populist ANO party of controversial billionaire Andrej Babis and members of the ruling ODS party such as influential South Bohemian Governor Martin Kuba argued for Rosatom to take part in the planned tender for the expansion of the Dukovany NPP on the grounds that it would push down the costs.
Bulgaria, Hungary and Finland also still rely on Russian nuclear fuel for their Russian-designed VVER-400 reactors. However, neither Bulgaria nor Hungary is looking to cut their nuclear ties with Moscow. Hungary is even deepening
its links by commisioning Russia's Rosatom to build its long-delayed new nuclear reactors at Paks.
Although Bulgaria attempted to cut its ties with Russia during the previous government of Kiril Petkov, the interim cabinet of Gulub Donev appointed
by President Rumen Radev seems determined to bring the country back into the Russian energy orbit.
Nuclear power's share dropped to record low in OECD, but solar jumped to record highs thanks to hot summer
Germany’s decision to take its nuclear power plants (NPPs) offline, coupled with production problems with France’s NPPs, saw the share of nuclear power in the OECD countries year to date fall to its lowest level ever. But that was offset with the share of solar leaping to its highest level thanks to the record- high temperatures this summer, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said
in its monthly update on September 15.
The latest IEA monthly electricity statistics report including June 2022 data showed that total net electricity production amounted to 908.6 TWh in June 2022. Over the first half of 2022, total electricity generation rose by 2.5% or 129.1 TWh compared to the first half of 2021.
Electricity production from renewables was responsible for most of the growth in electricity generation (+7.5% YTD), led by strong wind and
solar output, respectively up by 20.2% and 21.4% on a year-to-date basis. Significant capacity additions for these two technologies have indeed been introduced across several OECD countries throughout the first six months of the year, the IEA said.
Nuclear electricity production in the OECD decreased by 4.1% or 36.3 TWh YTD, because of reduced nuclear output after NPP shutdowns in Germany and Belgium as well as extended maintenance operations in France over the first half of 2022.
Electricity production from fossil fuels was stable at 495.7 TWh in June 2022, almost unvaried compared to June 2021 (-0.8% year on year). Electricity generation from coal decreased by 6.4% y/y, mainly because of lower output in the OECD Americas (-15.1% y/y), partly compensated by increased output in OECD Europe (+ 11.2% y/y). Conversely, electricity production from natural gas went up by 2.0% y/y, with positive increases being registered in all the OECD regions. In OECD Europe, total net electricity amounted to 269.5 TWh in June 2022, up by 1.1% compared to June 2021.
Production from nuclear continued to decrease (-16.7% y/y), reaching a record low share of 16.8% in the electricity mix.
Conversely, production from renewables kept increasing (+6.2% y/y), driven by wind (33.6% y/y) and solar (17.6% y/y), thanks to the record hot summer. European production from solar achieved a record high share of 10.7% in the electricity mix.
OECD Electricity Production by Fuel Type Year-to-Date Comparison
Electricity Production (TWh)
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