Galena Nuclear Power Plant
A new development in the nuclear power industry might bring the industry back from stagnation. Galena, Alaska is the possible site for a new Japanese built power plant. If everything goes to plan, the first nuclear power plant since 1978 may be ordered.
Galena is located in a backwoods part of Alaska along the Yukon River. It is not accessible by roads, leaving only air and water access. Currently, Galena’s energy needs are provided by large shipments of fossil fuels. Electricity use is avoided, and accounts for only 4% of their energy usage. Space heating is done by the end user by using Kerosene and wood. Because of the climate where Galena is located, the Yukon River is choked with ice 8-9 months of the year, stopping all river barges. This scarcity of fuel serves to make the cost of energy for residents of the region very expensive.
City officials have taken it upon themselves to look across the world for a solution to their energy needs. Since the residents of Galena are obviously environmentally oriented, the perfect solution would have to be less of an environmental impact than the wood and Kerosene they currently rely on. In addition, it would have to be highly reliable, as new parts could not be delivered in the middle of the winter.
Their study for cheap energy thus far has ended with the Toshiba 4S (Super Safe, Small and Simple) reactor design. This reactor is believed to be the most reliable yet designed. It requires no moving parts and minimal staffing. Toshiba has seen this as an opportunity to test out their new “nuclear battery” reactor design. If Galena succeeds in having the reactor licensed, Toshiba will install their 4S reactor free of charge by 2012.
If all goes to plan, it is projected that such a reactor could provide clean electric energy to residents Galena and rural surrounding customers between 5 and 13 cents/kWh, which factors in only operating costs. On paper, it has been determined that the reactor could run for 30 years without being refueled.
The technical specifications of the 4S reactor are quite unique in the nuclear industry. The actual reactor would be located in sealed, cylindrical vault 30 meters underground, while the building above ground would be 22 x 16 x 11 meters in size. This power plant is designed to provide 10MWatts of power, which is more than enough for the rural community of Galena.
Many things have to happen for this plan to succeed. As it stands, there are no special deals for smaller and/or less complex nuclear power plants. It typically takes 5 years for a power plant to become licensed, and most companies cannot afford to cover their own costs during this process along with the costs of the licensing agencies. The way that this was done in the past was to use grants just to pay for the licensing fees.
Toshiba plans to sell more of these reactors throughout Alaska and the rest of the United States, if the first one succeeds in Galena. This could prove to be the restart of nuclear power proliferation in the United States.