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BUSINESS OVERVIEW
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6.1 Markets for nuclear power and renewable energies
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competitiveness: reduction in fuel consumption and operating costs, high
availability (92%) over a 60-year period of operation, thus maximizing power
generation; and
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environmental protection: reduction in the quantity of used fuel and final waste.
6.1.1.3.
RENEWABLE ENERGIES
Renewable energies contribute to energy self-sufficiency as regards fossil resources
while limiting greenhouse gas emissions.
They also currently benefit from support mechanisms in several countries: favorable
electric rates, production quotas, green certificates, etc. Many countries are
committed to expanding the percentage of renewable energies in their production,
leading one to assume that such policies will be pursued.
In some regions, the competitiveness of certain renewable technologies is already
in line with that of more conventional sources of energy, thanks to technology
enhancements, economies of scale, the learning curve and the growing size
of facilities. The acceleration in market consolidation observed recently in
many segments of this market should also contribute to an increase in their
competitiveness in the short term.
6.1.2.
NUCLEAR ENERGY MARKETS
The first commercial nuclear power programs were launched in the mid-1960s
in the United States and in the early 1970s in Europe. In the 1970s, with fears of
fossil fuel shortages rising (oil shock), several countries decided to reduce their
dependency on imported energy by launching the development of nuclear power
programs. The 1970s and 1980s saw a sharp rise in these programs, as shown
below. Strong initial growth slowed when the public became concerned after the
accidents at Three Mile Island in 1979 and Chernobyl in 1986. As a result, whereas
399 reactors had been built over the 1970 to 1990 period, installed capacity rose
by only 22.9% over the 1990 to 2016 period. As the vast programs initiated in
North America and Western Europe subsided, the growth of the global reactor
fleet picked up in Eastern Europe and Asia. Following the Fukushima accident in
Japan caused by a tsunami in March 2011, the installed fleet strengthened the
security of cooling water supply in the event of an accident and set up new safety
measures to cope with such events.
WORLD INSTALLED NUCLEAR GENERATING CAPACITY (IN NET GWE)
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Europe - Western
Net Capacity (GWe)
Year
Europe - Central and Eastern
Asia - Middle East and South
Asia - Far East
America - Northern
America - Latin
Africa
1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005
2016
2010
Sources: IAEA PRIS Database.
Global installed nuclear generating capacity is estimated at 391 GWe in 2016,
slightly more than in 2015.
The figure above shows the breakdown of global installed nuclear generating
capacity.
At December 31, 2016, a total of 449 reactors representing 412 GWe (391 GWe
net) were in service in 31 countries, including the world’s largest energy consuming
regions.
With about 41% of the global fleet, the installed base in Europe and the
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is preeminent, ahead of North America,
which represents about 26%of the fleet. However, most of themedium-termgrowth
potential for nuclear power (2017-2018) is located in Asia (China, South Korea and
India) and, to a lesser extent, in the countries of the CIS, as shown in the figure below.
2016 AREVA
REFERENCE DOCUMENT
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