Day: November 25, 2016

As the world’s oil, coal and gas reserves decrease at dramatic rates, investments in refining other types of energy solutions are rapidly increasing.

In the past twelve months alone, billions of dollars have been invested in developing nuclear energy around the world.

The United States is the world’s largest producer of nuclear power, accounting for more than 30 percent of the nuclear generation of electricity globally, and is set to increase in 2017 and beyond.

Here, boldbusiness.com looks at the dominance of nuclear power in the energy market and how America is making a bold impact on a global scale.

The European Commission recently approved a multi-billion dollar deal between Russia and Hungary to develop and expand their Paks II nuclear power plant, while other nations are increasing their dependency on nuclear power to rival industry leaders.

On both sides of the Atlantic, governments and energy companies are constantly developing their technological know-how to produce the cleanest, affordable and effective energy output.

To maintain America’s market dominance, energy giants are coming together to develop innovative solutions to improve the nuclear energy market.

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) and Southern Nuclear recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding to study the “development and licensing of advanced reactors including GEH’s PRISM sodium-cooled fast reactor design” and to work together with the Department of Energy on advanced reactor licensing projects.

According to GEH, by using PRISM technology on a commercialized basis, “all the world’s used fuel could eventually be consumed while at the same time providing enough clean, carbon-free energy to power all global households, (estimated at approximately 1.6 billion living units) for as long as 200 years, based on a per household consumption of 3,400 kWh/year”.

Advanced technologies like these are what ensures the United States leads the way in innovation, and enables their global dominance in nuclear energy.

It has become clear that the only way to make a bold impact in an already saturated market is by developing bold ideas which in turn produce market-leading results.

A clean energy revolution has begun. Back in the days, clean energy has been unfairly dismissed as the poor-performing relation to fossil fuels and nuclear power, but thanks to the development of advanced technologies a new clean energy resurgence has emerged.

As the world moves closer to adopting a low-carbon economy, more cost-effective and environmentally-friendly technologies are being developed.

Here, boldbusiness.com looks at the effect low-carbon technologies has on the energy market.

Bold Moves For Clean Energy

The Department of Energy (DOE) recently revealed that due to decreased costs there has been an increase in the deployment of the five main clean energy technologies: wind turbines, solar technologies for both utility-scale and distributed photovoltaic (PV), electric vehicles (EVs) and light-emitting diodes (LEDs).

Outlined in the report ‘Revolution…Now’, it states that the economic and environmental benefits of clean energy are finally being realized, thanks to the affordability and increased use throughout the United States.

The DOE has pledged further investment in the research and development of clean energy solutions and concluded that the five main sources have already “contributed to price reductions from 40 percent to as high as 94 percent since 2008”.

“We need to continue pushing the innovation agenda that leads to these kinds of dramatic cost reductions for all low-carbon technologies and increases America’s competitiveness and independence in the global clean energy economy,” Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz recently said.

In fact, clean energy technologies have made a bold impact on the energy market, and are proving more successful than originally thought.

According to the DOE, “Solar power saved 17 million metric tons of CO2 in 2014 – leading to reduced water consumption and decreased air pollution that equates to nearly 700 million USD in environmental savings. LEDs use 85 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs and projections show that increased installation could allow for up to 630 billion USD in energy saving for American’s between now and 2035”.

What’s more, the report highlights the emergence of four new technologies – fuel cells, grid-connected batteries, energy management systems, and big area additive manufacturing – which are set to further increase the scope of the clean energy market over the coming years.

To combat a fast-developing global energy crisis, the United States government has taken bold steps and implemented bold ideas to build a successful, competitive, independent and growing clean energy economy.