Before I talk about energy, let me say a couple of things about our financial environment and some of the things that are going on. First, I think it’s important that we all get the word out that everything is being done. The rescue packet is going to take a little time. I heard someone say yesterday that this package was approved and stock market is down, so it’s not working. Well it takes a little bit of time to put this incredible machinery in place to be able to execute a very complex plan. But it’s going to be done in the very near future and so that’s one thing: it will take a little bit of time and it’s a very detailed execution. But it’s going to work.
The other thing is that there is recognition now that this is a global problem. We are pleased that other countries around the world are taking action. We are pleased that people are moving quickly. Sometimes it’s easy to overlook how much has been done and how decisive people have been in a very short period of time. We are hoping the rest of the world also takes that kind of decisiveness.
The important thing is that all available tools are being used. The Federal Reserve is using tools at its disposal, the Administration, the Treasury—all the tools that are available that can be put up against this problem are being put up against the problem.
We are going to get through this. It’s going to take a little bit of time. But, we have been through crises before and when you’re going through it, it seems like, you know, you will never get through—but we will get through and we will get through successfully.
It’s important as we are doing this, that we are addressing the financial difficulties, that we are also keeping our eye on the broader economy and broader economic policy and broader economic strategy. Of course, energy is still at the heart of our economic policy going forward. It is clear that we are facing critical challenges in the energy field as well. The positive aspect for the nuclear energy industry is that, if anything, this has highlighted the need for a diversification: within that diversification, the need for nuclear energy.
From day one, President Bush has been committed to an energy policy that addresses our nation’s short-term and long-term needs. And he has mentioned in the past that we need to “do everything.” We need to cover the broad range of sources of energy, so that means increase domestic supplies of oil and gas. And we were pleased that the Congressional ban on offshore drilling expired last week. So it doesn’t make any sense whatsoever to be asking the rest of the world to drill and produce more; but we’re not willing to do so ourselves. So we need to get on with it and be more practical about producing and tapping into our own sources. Reduce consumption with more efficient cars; accelerate research on new technologies; and expand renewable power tax credits to cover nuclear energy.
Over the past three years, we’ve experienced the beginning of a resurgence of nuclear. There’s still so much more work to do. But a very difficult trend has been reversed, and we need to continue to step it up and continue to do even more. We roughly get 20 percent of our electricity from nuclear power. That’s an amount comparable to the electricity we use in California, Texas and New York. So it’s big, but we know that we can be doing more. France, which is an example we use often, gets about 80 percent from nuclear energy. And they are continuing to develop their capacity to invest and move forward. We have let other countries move ahead while we, unfortunately, stood still.
It’s time for us to get focused and step it up and to also increase our usage of nuclear energy.
Energy consumption, as you know, is soaring globally. It may have a period of time where it doesn’t grow as fast or not growing. But over time, over the long haul, it will continue to grow. (It’s) projected to increase by 50 percent between 2005 and 2030. So obviously we need nuclear power to be able to confront that type of demand increase.
The last time a construction permit was approved for a currently operating nuclear reactor in the U.S. was in 1978, and the last time a new nuclear reactor went into operation was in 1996. There is no excuse for that. We should not be looking at those types of facts when energy is so critical. Today we have a new regulatory process and have taken other steps to expedite the process and create the environment to encourage investment. There are now applications for 25 new reactors at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. So it’s a start and it’s progress. Again, we need to do more.
Building new nuclear power plants will boost our economy. It will boost our ability to compete. It will make us stronger. And obviously, it’s going to spur innovation, it’s going to attract investment, it’s going to create high skilled jobs. It is going to be good for our society, our economy, our country.
Last month, the American Council on Global Nuclear Competitiveness projected that fossil fuel imports could be reduced by as much as nine billion dollars per year (in today’s dollars) if we were just able to keep the proportion of nuclear capacity the same in 2030 it is today: the proportion of nuclear capacity. No matter how you look at the numbers; and, if you do look at numbers and you start projecting those numbers, you come to the conclusion that you can’t get to a future where we are self sufficient or we are not importing foreign oil. All the things people talk about, you can’t get there unless you add nuclear. Especially when the subject of doing it in a way that reduces climate change is an important factor. So, look at the numbers. We need nuclear. There is just no way that the numbers can work, that they add up in a relatively short period of time, ten, fifteen, twenty years unless we add nuclear.
The Council also forecasted up to 350,000 new American jobs and 542 billion dollars in cumulative GDP could be created over a 20-year period with substantial development of new nuclear reactors. Tens of thousands of these new jobs will be in the nuclear fuel enrichment and recycling subsector. This subsector will support U.S. exports of nuclear fuel to our allies, who are also expanding their use of peaceful, civil nuclear energy.
India and China, for example, are huge potential markets for U.S. clean energy technologies. We have led several Trade Missions to India and China—one has been Clean Energy and Environment—for companies that have been in the business of clean energy to China and to India and the potential is tremendous as many of you know.
David Bohigian visited India and China last month with 19 U.S. companies, and they all come back with a very clear picture that future supplies will be a huge business for these two countries: that these two countries are going to be massive markets in the not too distant future. It’s clear that we should have demand here in the U.S., but also overseas.
Projections indicate that India could eventually be the largest renewable energy market in the world—and that the clean technology market in China will increase to 186 billion dollars in 2010, and over 550 billion dollars by 2020. Right now as we speak, the President should be signing the U.S.-India nuclear legislation in the East Room and that will open billions of dollars in investments in nuclear plants in India over the next 15 years. So not only is this important for our own nuclear strategy, but this is a huge market that is unfolding as we speak.
Exports of course, as you know, are a bright spot in our economy. They will continue to be an increasingly important role in our economy. We may see a flattening out. We may see a softness in exports in the short term. But, over the long haul, exports will continue to be a significant part of GDP. Last quarter, exports were 13 and a half percent of GDP. Net exports. That’s huge. It’s bigger than anything we can see if we go back to World War II. We exported 1.6 trillion dollars last year. Year to date that’s growing about 18 percent. We’re talking about a lot of companies who have engaged in the world economy and have unlocked the key to exporting. They have made contacts. They have opened up markets. Their products have demand in overseas markets. That’s going to continue. The Commerce Department can be a partner in the nuclear resurgence by helping to open international markets to our technologies.
Today, I’m pleased to announce we’ve recently launched a Civil Nuclear Trade Initiative.
We’re putting together a nuclear industry trade advisory committee. We’ve initiated a nuclear energy working group with the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee.
We joined with the Departments of State and Energy to promote U.S. nuclear technology for the first time at the recent International Atomic Energy Agency, and we’re organizing future civil nuclear trade missions. We want to be involved. We want to be in the game. We want to be aggressive.
I want to thank all of you who have been working with us on these projects and who have been a part of it. Let me just mention before I close, an energy innovation panel, which I moderated in Pittsburgh last month. The president and CEO of Westinghouse, made a point which I believe is relevant to today’s Summit. He said that consumers are still anxious. They understand the logic of nuclear energy, but they are still anxious. They are still nervous about the safety, and what we need to do is educate.
This is not 1979, we can’t be looking back. The world has moved forward, we have made tremendous progress and we need to be telling consumers that. We didn’t get stuck in 1979. We have moved on, and so has technology, so have other countries. So, we need to communicate the progress that has been made, the steps that have been taken to improve safety.
The NRC works closely with industry to ensure plants are operated in a safe manner to protect people, the public and the environment. NRC-regulated nuclear facilities are considered among the safest and most secure industrial plants in our country. We need to make sure the public know that. We need to get the word out that we are taking steps, the government is taking steps, industries are taking steps and this is a very safe industry.
So let me end with this: the idea of the summit is to convey, and communicate that we are in the game. That we see nuclear as a big part of our future, that we have made progress, that we have turned the corner. We are not going to see another 20 years where we don’t approve permits, we don’t open up new reactors. We have turned the corner, but we need to do more. We need to do more not just for our market, but especially since the rest of the world is making great progress on technology that is going to drive a lot of economies in the future. And we need to be part of it.
Nuclear power will play a leading role in building a secure, sustainable energy future. If someone tells you they can get to a clean future with energy self sufficiency, but they don’t want to do it with nuclear, check your numbers, something must be wrong and we need to get that level of realism and pragmatism in the minds of the American public.
So thank you for your leadership. We look forward to working with you and thank you for your interest.
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce
