Fukushima could trigger fast smart grid rollout
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Send to friendby Jonathan Tee (jontee@innovationobservatory.com)
The on-going crisis at the Fukushima nuclear power station is leading to signs of significantly increased public hostility towards nuclear power. Several countries, including the UK, USA, Spain and Switzerland, have announced safety reviews while China has announced a freeze on new nuclear power projects till 2012. Germany, where the political backlash has been most intense, has closed seven of its oldest reactors for a three-month safety review amidst calls for the early closure of its 17 nuclear reactors by the 2020s (rather than by 2036).
Many governments have looked to nuclear power as a key component in their energy mix. Concerns over the longevity of oil supply, the effect of instability in major oil-supplying nations and the environmental impact of fossil fuels have led many governments to regard nuclear as a key component of a diversified energy policy and a major contributor towards energy security. Increased and widespread opposition to nuclear power poses a major policy challenge.
Alternatives to fossil fuels such as renewable energy sources have typically been perceived as making important contributions to energy supply but as not being reliable enough on their own. Achieving reductions in home energy consumption requires incentivising and enforcing action at the household level that is felt to be politically more challenging than dealing with localised opposition to new power plants.
Part of the problem lies with the legacy grid infrastructure that entrenches large-scale centralised energy production despite its inefficiencies in distribution. Smart grids, incorporating smart meters and two-way communications networks, enable the integration of distributed power sources including local micro-generation (for example through photovoltaic solar panels, small wind turbines and biomass generators) with centralised energy distribution; they can also facilitate and incentivise better demand management. However, smart grids require a supportive regulatory environment, timely and sufficient availability of government funding and a strong and supportive government energy policy – and these enabling factors have not always been consistently in place.
If opposition to nuclear power increases significantly then the political calculation may alter – regardless of whether the public’s assessment of the risk profile of nuclear power is accurate. Policy makers may start to regard the establishment of smart grid infrastructure supporting more widely distributed renewable generating capacity as more politically acceptable than forging ahead with new nuclear power stations and a crucial step towards enabling more efficient use and production of energy resources. The Fukushima disaster could prove to be a trigger to a more rapid rollout of smart grid infrastructure.
Let me know your views – email me on jontee@innovationobservatory.com.
Innovation Observatory has published a series of report looking at aspects of the smart grid. The latest report, published in February 2011, is Smart Grid Technology Investment: Forecasts for 2010-2030. The report provides a comprehensive functional breakdown of capex and opex investment forecasts per region, and for the major investing countries in the world.
There is more information at http://www.innovationobservatory.com/reports/latesttitles.