Reality check to the nuclear deal

We’ve seen so much of hoopla created around the nuclear deal, be it left, be it BJP or be it the ruling UPA who’s pressing hard to get the deal done before the country hits the general elections button.

A reality check would reveal all the cons of the deal, which probably would not ink much of betterment to India’s cause but it does help in an energy starved country such as ours.

I would like to put forth a few points which do not usually demean the sense of producing power from the nuclear reactors but in general sense as to what it would mean to the world and in particular to us, India and its citizens.

The first thing that our country needs is a mixture of energy resources as it would most definitely benefit us from hedging against commercially unforeseen risks. As we stand today, 2.5 percent of our electricity demands are met by nuclear processes. We certainly need to increase on that to hedge on our coal dependency. But here comes the catch. The generation of power from imported enriched uranium won’t make much of a commercial sense as it would be too costly on the tax payers and would need generosity of the state to be consumer friendly on the paying front.
Just as we are one of the word’s top imports in Arms and Ammunition, and our research and development in the same being defunct, the same is going to happen in the power space. Now just like when we could have invested in our own resources to build a world class base of Arms and ammunition center for our defense capabilities, but we chose otherwise, we are in the process of repeating a similar mistake with power sector. Whether we have enough resources and commitment in our country for the generation of power is a separately debatable topic, at least we can try to invest in our own energy resources.
Also, the share of nuclear power in worldwide electricity supply is stagnant at about 16% for the past 20-22 years. This issue is still not bothering us at all. It might just not be economically viable to produce electricity via nuclear processes. It is agreed that every power generating source needs state subsidy in one way or the other, nuclear reactors are coupled with a lot of overhead and maintenance issues like accident covers, radioactive waste storage, terrorist and international safeguards.
Nuclear power generation has seen the least technological advancements in the past years as compared to its peers. So, if technological advancements are unlikely to come by in this power generating source, the costs are likely to remain stagnant or rather will be increasing.
While electricity generation might be clean, the nuclear fuel cycle is carbon intensive and as such, emits a lot of green house gases and hence is a danger to the already much hyped global warming, besides its radioactive wastes being a threat to the environment.

All said though, India is still in an advantageous position with nuclear power being a substitute or second fiddle to our normal power generating resources as they have never been able to cope up with the heave demand our country has posted ever since we became independent.

But however, a lot of dependency on Australia for the import of enriched Uranium might lead us to be dependent the way we are dependent on Crude oil prices and crude prices impact our petrol prices and hence inflation, which costs dearly to a common middle class man.

What is better? You decide…..

Source of inspiration for this article: Brahma Chellaney, Editorial, The Hindu