NUCLEAR POWER INDUSTRY

The power industry is one of the most important element of the national economy. Nowadays all industry, transport and households are strongly dependent on electricity. Therefore technical aspect of power generation is not crucial. External impacts turned out to be much more important.

Problems like: growing oil's, gas's, coal's prices, ensuring security of supplies, more and more rigorous limitations of greenhouse's gases emissions, CO2 allowances and introducing of EU ETS (European Union Emission Trade System), developing of energy security standards in the EU legislation, European lobbying in area of renewable sources, and philosophy of global warming based on statement which can't be scientifically proved [1]. have caused that world is turning back towards nuclear energy second time in its history.

In years 60's and 70's, world has experienced a significant development of nuclear power plants, as it is shortly described in "Historical aspect of nuclear power reactors" chapter. But after disasters in Three Miles Island and Chernobyl, nuclear power sector's growth has been stopped until years 90's, when first reactor of 3rd generation ABWR has started to operate. At present situation, facing the impacts, described above, the use of conventional fuels is becoming economically ineffective. Additionally, more and more countries tend to larger diversification in energy fuel mix.

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