How much does the construction of a NPP COST?

Starting a discussion on the costs of the construction of a nuclear power plant, it is necessary first of all to ask yourself one question: do you want to have a NPP with the maximal actual possible level of safety, or are you ready to renounce to a certain part of safety, and essentially save money in the project? However, one must not think, that it is only necessary to pay more, for being sure that the variant of a reactor chosen by you (experts, certainly) will be reliable. Alas, it is not so. Something strange happens with nuclear reactors in general. From the very beginning, some of them refused to behave decently and quite often showed not so peaceful behaviours, forcing operators to introduce all new and newest improvements, in order to reduce the danger of emergencies. Reactors became more complex and expensive, but it was not possible to render them safer. Today, as well as twenty years ago, atomic lobbyists continue to repeat that the new reactor, for sure, will become a model of reliability. One cannot see them yet on the horizon, and it is better not to guess about their possible costs.

In general, one can find very few information in official media the data on the increase of the costs of the construction of reactors. But we managed nevertheless to find something. Therefore, Fig. 3 shows the data of the Ministry for the Power Generating Industry of the USA on the costs of the reactor, per watt produced [10]. In 10 years, these costs have increased from 1.100 in 1980 up to 4.570 dollars per kilowatt in 1989, which is than 4 times. For the next years, reactors are not become easier to build, and their cost continued to increase.

One gets the impression, that the more the reactor is perfect, the more it is complex, and, hence, the more it is expensive, the more is the danger of it falling out of action. Simply magic cycle!

And now some more details about other data available in the literature. For example, the construction of one NPP in Brazil costed about 7 billion dollars. Cost of construction of the NPP such as Biblis (Germany) with a capacity of 1.200 MW has increased from about 1 billion DM in 1975 to 4,570 billion in 1985 up to 6,2 billion in 1990 (3,5 billion dollars

It is necessary to remember that the construction of a NPP requires to create the necessary infrastructure both for the construction, and for the operation of the NPP (industrial bases of builders, assemblers and transporters, enterprises providing service and operation of the NPP, including services of radioactive waste storage, social structures and many other things).

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Figs. 3. Specific cost of constructing reactors (in US dollars per kilowatt of capacity).

In accordance with sanitary regulations (SNiP) [11] all these domains are estimated to 30% of the full cost of the NPP. The NPP should be built far away from existing large settlements and industrial sites. This increases real cost of the NPP.

According to the US Department of Energy, the average specific capital investments for NPP’s, which entered into operation in 1987, (see Figs 3) amounted to 3.700 dollars/kW. Specific capital investment for coal power station with full washing of gases, and other nature protection measures, constructed at the same time in New York, amounted to 1.100 dollars/kW, that means that construction of the NPP was 3,4 times more expensive, than the most perfect and non-polluting coal station.

Cost of projected NPP with capacity of 600-800 MW that assumed to build in Turkey made 2 billion US dollars. [12]. Specific capital investment (under the project) makes about 3000 dollars/kW.

The “Financial Times” (1996) asserts, “a Gas power station with capacity of 1000 MW costs today 400 million pounds sterling (670 million US dollars), and it can be constructed in two years time. A NPP of the same capacity will cost from two or three billion pounds sterling (3,4 – 5,0 billion dollars) and will need eight years for its construction. Already only for this reason, the nuclear industry in the West is in decline since a long time”.

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