Currently, with a total of around 23,000MW installed capacity, not including the 2,400MW Bakun Dam that can be connected to Peninsular Malaysia’s grid with billion dollars investments, the energy reserve margin of Peninsular Malaysia stands at roughly 40%. With an average of 4% annual growth, it is estimated that the maximum demand of electricity will be at 23,099MW in 2020, which is nearly twice the current demand [1]. At present, every 1% growth in gross domestic product (GDP) is accompanied by a growth in energy demand. Yes, the current capacity is enough to meet the energy demand even by the year 2020 but bear in mind that is if all of the power plants are simultaneously producing electricity. What if the 2,400MW Bakun Dam are undergoing maintenance because of eroded turbines? What if there is not enough supply of imported coals to be burnt in a 1000MW power plant? Think about the risks of not having any mitigation in place. Why not build a non-renewable energy power plant instead? Because the non-renewable energy, other than fast depleting and eventually will run out without the ability to be recycled, they leave behind harmful by-products known as the greenhouse gases (GHG) upon combustion, thereby causing a lot of pollution. For examples, mining of such fuels leads to irreversible damage to the adjoining environment while the use of fossil fuel pollutes the environment. Prices for fossil fuels are rising, especially if the real cost of their carbon is included. In future, oil will no longer be a viable option for electricity generation, due to the diminishing national oil resources, and Malaysia is expected to become a net oil importer by the year 2030[2]. Furthermore, fluctuating global oil prices do not augur well for a reliance on oil for electricity generation. As such, the priority for the use of oil should be in those sectors where it is difficult to find a substitute, especially in the transportation sector. Of the three current main sources for electricity generation, there is uncertainty over gas supply to the power sector in the peninsular beyond 2030. To cover for the shortfall in gas supply, coal-fired electricity generation may need to be increased. This is not an attractive option, given that almost 100% of the national coal supply is dependent on imports, with current total of approximately 20 million tons per year. [3] It is very much wiser to go with a combination of renewable and nuclear energy to replace the conventional energy power plants.
The bitter truth is it is just not possible to fill in such a high demand with just conventional sources of energy, countries look toward unconventional sources of energy such as solar, wind and nuclear energy. The yield of solar and wind energy is not that high. Nuclear energy is the answer for sustainable electric source in the future. The reason why nuclear energy is important for future energy consumption is nuclear reaction release tremendous amounts of energy. Nuclear energy is so immense that one nuclear plant may provide electricity for a really large area. Thus it is important to have nuclear reactor to sustain future energy demand. Indirectly, this will be one of the stepping stones for a country such as Malaysia to be recognized as a developed country. Nuclear energy doesn't emit anything else except steam to the atmosphere. France which has embraced nuclear power as their main source of power generation is one of the countries that have the cleanest air in the world. [4] This is mostly because of the heavy use of nuclear energy and minimum dependence of coal or oil based power plants. Future energy demand will be so demanding that it will be a major concern on the environment if we keep on using fossil fuel as our main source of energy and Malaysia need to take part in preserving the global environment. As the world struggles to cap CO2 emissions and GHG and deal with climate change, nuclear energy is becoming more and more appealing. Fanned by climate change and dwindling fossil fuel supplies, there is now a nuclear renaissance. More and more countries are beginning to consider having nuclear reactors. In this region, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia have recently announced their nuclear plans. Nuclear energy has existed for many decades and is a popular energy source in developed countries. For instance, according to World Nuclear Association, 75% of France electricity needs are supplied by its 59 nuclear reactors and South Korea has over 20 nuclear power plants which supply 40% of its needs. Nuclear has long been considered as the only form of energy that can replace fossil fuels adequately, which currently provides 85% of the world’s energy today. The burning of fossil fuels spews about 30 billion tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year but in contrast, nuclear reactors produce almost zero CO2, according to Environmentalist of Nuclear Energy. They only produce CO2 during the construction of the plant, which is not a part of energy-generating process.
As in many developed countries in the world, there is now a renewed interest in using nuclear energy for electricity generation in Malaysia. Recently in July 2009, the government has agreed to include nuclear as an option in the energy policy of the country, with the drafting of a new national energy policy expected to be readied by the end of the year. This is due to the realization that the available national energy resources are inadequate to guarantee supply beyond the year 2030 and it will take 10 to 15 years to develop the human capital to tap into nuclear energy. This is why we have to start preparing now. Currently, electricity generation in the country is predominantly based on only three of the five fuel sources, namely, natural gas, coal and hydropower. Oil is hardly used for electricity generation, except for standby generation, and the contribution of RE to electricity generation is still insignificant and far below the target set under the 9th Malaysia Plan (2006–2010). It is true that the cost to construct power lines to transfer electricity from Borneo, Bakun especially is lower than constructing a 1000MWe nuclear power plant. The setback is the distance between peninsular and Borneo is more than thousand miles. The power lines cannot be built directly from the source to peninsular. Instead, it has to go through Sumatera first. This will add more additional cost which could be unexpected. The maintenance of subsea power lines is also risky and costly, not to forget the thousands kilometers power lines that have to be under scrutiny. Going through the sea borders of Sumatera for maintenance purpose is a lot of bureaucracy as it involves foreign government. With the increasing global demand for clean and sustainable energy, peaceful, safe and secure use of nuclear energy, further development of affordable and cost-effective small and medium-sized nuclear power plants (NPP) is important. For Malaysia, the nuclear power program can be initiated with a small nuclear power plant as a power demonstration reactor, before larger plants that are more cost-competitive can be built. This was the approach taken by Japan, which started with a Japan power demonstration reactor (JPDR) generating only 13MW of electricity from 1963 to 1982, before building 53 larger plants with capacities between 340MW and 1300MW [5].
Source(s):
[1]Mansor SA. (2008). Keynote address: International Energy Security Forum, Kuala Lumpur.
[2]Kamarudin AB. (2011). Fostering Green Strategy Through “A-F-F-I-R-M” Model for Sustainable Development Within The Environmental-Socio-Economic System in Malaysia.
[3]Oh T.H, Pang S.Y., Shing C.C. (2009). Energy policy and alternative energy in Malaysia: Issues and challenges for sustainable growth. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 14, 1241–1252, Elsevier Ltd.
[4] Richard Rhodes. Journalist and historian, author of 18 books and winner of the Pulitzer Prize in Nonfiction, Testimony before the Subcommittee on Energy and Environment, Committee on Science, U.S. House of Representatives. (July 2000).
"Shocking as the statement may sound after all the years of misrepresentation, nuclear power is demonstrably the greatest form of large-scale energy generation at hand. France, by generating 80 percent of its electricity with nuclear power, has reduced its air pollution by a factor of five. The U.S. nuclear power industry, by improving capacity and performance alone, has already made the largest contribution of any American industry to meeting the U.S. Kyoto commitment to limiting CO2 releases into the atmosphere. The U.S. nuclear power industry has an extraordinary record of safe operation across the past forty years, and I would submit to you that disposal of civilian nuclear waste is a political, not a technical, problem. Nuclear power is much safer than fossil-fuel systems in terms of industrial accidents, environmental damage, health effects and long-term risk."
[5]Yusof F. (2009). International Nuclear Conference Kuala Lumpur.
