UniCredit: Energy Crisis Revives Nuclear Interest - FJElite

The current energy crisis has intensified the global search for alternatives to fossil fuels and revived interest in nuclear energy. Like the first wave of nuclear expansion in the 1970s, the shift is being driven by fossil-fuel supply constraints, with nuclear again attracting support as a low-carbon and domestically secure energy source. In Europe, the Commission has recently reaffirmed its support for nuclear power as clean energy, while the earlier post-Fukushima push to phase out nuclear has slowed or stopped as the difficulty of replacing it has become clearer.

The main constraint is still cost and timing. Greenfield nuclear projects remain expensive and slow to build compared with other options, but reliable, dispatchable nuclear power still holds clear appeal, especially as baseload supply alongside intermittent renewables. Small modular reactors are drawing growing attention as a possible next growth area, though the technology is still at an early stage and will need years of development and investment before it can be deployed at the scale needed to meet fast-rising electricity demand.