Nuclear energy development and national economy

The utilization and development of nuclear power in Japan are now advanced on the basis of a fact that nuclear power generation has taken root in the country. The scale of nuclear power generation is currently a total of 22 power plants with aggregate capacity over 15,500 MW, 16% of the total power generation. There are still two alternate arguments: i.e. whether nuclear energy can be a complete substitute of petroleum or not, because the consumption of petroleum is necessary for the fuel cycle. Due to the rise of petroleum price, the nuclear power generation is now positively economical. On the other hand, the promotion of nuclear power can lead to the saving in foreign currency. While the economy in nuclear power is through the use of LWRs presently, the research and development efforts in ATRs, FBRs, etc. are essential for the future. (Mori, K.)