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Comment by crashingintoyou | Hacker News Reader

> Australia would still need to import nuclear fuel

No they wouldn't. To quote https://globalroadtechnology.com/uranium-mining-australia-hi...

> Australia is home to 31% of the world’s recoverable uranium. Australian uranium is exported and consists about one-quarter of its energy exports. Australia uses no nuclear power and depends on coal. The uranium mining industry is a billion dollar industry in Australian dollar ... In 2019, Australia produced 7790 tonnes of uranium and was ranked the world’s third best producer behind Kazakhstan and Canada.

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I assume that the previous poster meant that Australia does not have a 235U-enrichment plant.

If that is true, Australia would have to export natural uranium and import back uranium enriched in 235U, unless they would choose to build a reactor with heavy-water, which can use natural uranium as a fuel.

What preventing Australia from building an enrichment plant?

Nothing. The entire context is absurd to say the least.

Australia is one of the most affluent countries in world history and hyper resource rich.

They should have a third of their energy supply coming from nuclear.

Nuclear is expensive (commonly said)? So what. Australia is hyper rich ($67k GDP per capita) and can afford to do it and can afford to subsidize it for consumers. What's a lot more expensive (risk) is having a weak, unreliable grid with a poor diversity of energy sources.

It's insane not to subsidize nuclear, if one believes even the calmer side of environmental warnings re climate change. It's extremely potent energy technology, we know how to build it, and we know we can keep improving on it yet.

For what it's worth, I'm Australian living in Australia, and I thoroughly agree with you.

Besides this, it's politically unteniable. Australia even just famously arranged to purchase US nuclear-powered subs - which require enriched fuel - without any capability to produce it or any intention of creating that capability. Their entire heavy maintenance and repower will need to and is planned to occur in the US.

Rather strange considered Australia has this tech https://www.silex.com.au/

> “Australia […] depends on coal”

About 60% of Australia’s electricity came from coal over the last 12-months, but this proportion is rapidly declining and all the large coal plants are losing money and slated for closure.

https://opennem.org.au/energy/nem/?range=all&interval=1y

The 2022 data isn’t there, right? That’s why it’s small?

Expect a big uptick in coal usage to offset Russian oil

How would you replace Russian oil with coal? Are there any oil based power plants? Those tend to be peaker plants due to the extremely high cost associated with them.

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