At first glance it might seem like an oxymoron, but in reality it is an apt combination: clean nuclear power represents one of the technologies that can help our Pass to increase its energy “resilience” and win the battle of decarbonisation. With potential positive repercussions both for the bills of families and businesses and for the climate battle.
It is no coincidence that the orientation of public opinion towards the atom is also changing. The Minister of the Environment and Energy Security, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, is well aware of this and recently recalled how nuclear energy, between fission and fusion, will also play a leading role at the G7 on climate, environment and energy which is to start in Venaria. «On fusion, Pichetto told journalists, we are an integral part of the Iter project in France, in many other parts of the world we have our large companies active in fusion production. On fission, we have Enea engaged in research and experimentation on small reactors. We intend to proceed, also upon mandate from the Italian Parliament, on research and experimentation.”
In particular, Iter is the European project that aims to build the largest fusion machine in the world and includes among its members China, India, Japan, South Korea, Russia, the United States and European Union. However, regardless of progress in fusion, it is SMR systems, small modular nuclear reactors, that are arousing government interest. Not only do SMRs not pollute, a well-known advantage of traditional nuclear power, but they are far safer. The technology behind these reactors minimizes the risk of accidents thanks to their advanced design and greater heat dissipation in the event of an emergency. Furthermore, they offer greater operational flexibility than older reactors and can be used for both electricity production and industrial applications, such as water desalination or electrolytic hydrogen production.
New generation nuclear power «I believe it is the best way to give continuity and guarantee to energy production», added the Environment Minister. Good news also on the waste front. After having published the list of potentially suitable sites for the planned national radioactive waste repository, the operational phase must now begin. “We could build a geological repository, but we could also pay a lease for many years to another country,” explained Pichetto. «We must, concluded the Meloni government representative, give an answer to a medium or low intensity storage because we produce waste every day, which is currently stored in around thirty sites.
Instead of temporary sites, it's about having a definitive site.”