Too hot to cool – can nuclear cope?

Will nuclear power save the day? Should we include nuclear energy in our future energy mix? I read today that these power plants do not cope well in hot weather which rather implies with a warming world they are not part of the solution. The Good Energy Market Update reports as follows, in the August heatwave.

France is not fairing much better than neighbouring countries, as their supply of nuclear fleets decreases even further. France relies on nuclear power, but these facilities require water for cooling. The heatwaves have meant that water is too hot to be used for cooling, meaning some plants must limit their running time. This is a further blow to the UK which typically imports excess power from France.

In Hockerton we use wind turbines and photovoltaic power to generate our energy.