Proponents of nuclear power quickly point out that construction time and costs have shrunk over the past few years due to more efficient generating techniques (Vishnevskiy & Dmitriev, 2003). Globally accepted designs streamline the process and new build experience shows that new plants can be built not only on time, but on budget (World Nuclear Association, 2004).
Operating costs per KWh have fallen 44% from 1990 to 2003. Because there is a high fixed cost in the extraction and construction phases, prices fall as there is an increased output of energy production. In comparison with fossil fuels, producing electricity through nuclear power is less expensive per MWh. (World Nuclear Association, 2004)
Nuclear = $30-50/MWh
Coal = $35-60/MWh
Natural Gas = $40-63/MWh
However, cheaper relative energy prices to fossil fuels do not make nuclear power a cost-effective option. It is generally characterized by high relative construction costs in comparison to those same fossil fuel energy sources as well as alternative renewable sources such as wind and hydro. Projects can cost well over $1 billion to construct depending on the scale and design. Estimates for 1,000 MW reactors reach between $6 and $9 billion (Schlissel and Biewald, 2008). Those same people that claim reactors are now being built on time and budget must not pay attention to news all over the world that nuclear reactors continue to be over budget by millions of dollars and behind schedule by years (Jacobson, 2010). In the case of some projects, construction is halted due to exorbitant costs, making the entire process futile.
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