Charlie StrossMay 16, 2024

UK government planning nuclear site in Scotland

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9eze1dzy5no

This is pointless: Scotland is already self-sufficient on renewables. What we need is a new grid interconnect between Scotland and England so we can export our surplus energy to the south!

It's all about the lobbyists, of course:

"Its ambitions for up to a quarter of all electricity to come from nuclear power by 2050 are being led by government-backed body Great British Nuclear." (Who?)

UK government planning nuclear site in Scotland - Alister Jack

The SNP government has effectively banned new nuclear developments north of the border.

BBC News
Show threadHighlandLawyer
@cstross
Arguably *we* don't need a new grid interconnect, we need the pricing regime changed so that we can benefit from all this renewable energy ourselves rather than being charged higher prices than the south of England are.
But yes, with a rational set-up, new interconnects from Scotland to England & Norway would be for the greater good.
May 16, 2024 at 9:55amTusky
Show threadCharlie StrossMay 16, 2024

@HighlandLawyer I have nothing against new-build nuclear on safety grounds: my objection is that it doesn't make any kind of economic sense (except insofar as it lines the pockets of certain big construction and engineering companies).

There might be a role for SMRs in powering very large container ships … in a couple of decades. So this *might* be a hidden cross-subsidy to RR to fund developing a civil nautical prime mover. But I don't think today's Tories are that far-sighted.

Show threadHighlandLawyerMay 16, 2024
@cstross I consider safe fission reactors like communism: it has been demonstrated to be perfectly possible at small scale in specific circumstances, but every time anyone has tried to bring it to full scale operation, vested personal interests have come into play, preventing it from happening & leading to all sorts of fall-out.
That aside, your analysis of the current proposal is correct. If it were for cross-subsidy, etc., south of England would be the logical location anyway.