WEMO24-Compiled Report-Interactive compressed (002) 4154-7882-8116 v.1 - Flipbook - Page 113
SMRs are part
of the answer
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FIGURE 2
Full potential of nuclear contributions to net zero
The U.S. Energy Information Administration’s 2023 International
Energy Outlook predicts global energy demand will increase
by 30% - 76% by 2050, with most of that demand met with
zero-carbon technologies, like nuclear. To meet that demand
the OECD-NEA projects up to 1160 MW of nuclear capacity by
2050, with SMRs contributing >50% of new nuclear as shown:
90
80
1200
70
1000
60
800
50
600
40
30
400
20
200
10
0
2020
2025
2030
2035
2040
2045
2050
Cumulative emissions avoided
IPCC 1.5° scenarios (2050 average) = 1 160 GW nuclear capacity (based on the average of IPCC 1.5% scenarios)
Conservative projections
Ambitious projections
Small modular reactors (2035 market outlook)
Small modular reactors (post-2035 market extrapolation)
Large-scale new builds (under construction)
Large-scale new builds (planned)
Long-term operation (planned)
Long-term operation (to 80 years)
Source: https://www.oecd-nea.org/jcms/pl_90816/the-nea-small-modular-reactor-dashboard-second-edition
WEMO 2024
To meet net zero industrial users will need convert energy
usage for electricity and process steam to clean energy. While
electricity can be provided by renewables and nuclear, hightemperature process steam will require nuclear to meet this
demand at scale. For example, at the SMR Conference 2024
Dow Chemical spoke of an annual all-in energy demand of 7GW
at their facilities – this represents about 7 large nuclear plants,
or 21 utility -scale SMRs, or 70 advanced reactors. That is just
one industrial client, which helps put in perspective the enormity
of decarbonization.
100
1400
113
Global Demand
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