Why nuclear power will continue to grow

The author, who is Director General of the IAEA, is optimistic about the continued growth of nuclear energy worldwide, despite the accident at Chernobyl. Since then, new reactor orders have been placed in France, Japan, South Korea and Britain. The demand for electricity is rising, in both industrialized and developing countries. In many locations, nuclear is half the price of coal-fired electricity. The average capacity factor of nuclear plants has risen from 61% to 70% in nine years. Although nuclear generation accounts for about 16% worldwide, it is only 3.5% in developing countries; and probably nuclear development will continue to be small in developing countries because of stringent infrastructure requirements and high capital cost. Public confidence in nuclear energy must be regained, and future accidents must be avoided