The nuclear option
Nuclear energy still has many doubters, including in Australia, but sentiment may be shifting as the world struggles to wean itself off fossil fuels.
“When it comes to nuclear, the wording is incredibly important. Should we consider nuclear? My answer is yes!” That was Mike-Cannon Brookes in response to a question from Capital Brief about the role nuclear power should play in Australia’s energy mix as we transition to a zero emissions economy.
The comment came from a lengthy interview we ran with arguably the nation’s most prominent clean energy investor (which you should totally read if you haven’t already).
Cannon-Brookes has previously dismissed nuclear out of hand, and while he still has pretty significant doubts about the practicality of it in Australia, the softening of his stance reflects a shift in thinking towards the controversial energy technology.
This is being driven by concerns about the ability of renewables to completely fill the void left by fossil fuels and the rise of small modular reactors (SMRs), which will theoretically be cheaper and faster to deploy than traditional nuclear power plants. These factors seem to be outweighing long-held concerns about safety of nuclear power and the storage of toxic waste it produces (as best depicted by the three-eyed fish in The Simpsons).
