South Africa Continues to be Committed to Nuclear Energy

In Capetown, South Africa, the South African government is strongly committed to nuclear energy, and the state utility, Eskom, plans to complete its version of the German-designed Pebble Bed Modular Reactor, the PBMR, in 2011. Once this 165-MW prototype is online, South Africa intends to mass produce this versatile reactor for domestic consumption and export to developing nations—up to 30 plants. South Africa, which has a looming energy shortage, is also considering adding another conventional nuclear plant to its electricity grid. Elsewhere in Africa, initial steps have been thwarted. In 1964 then-President Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana moved to build a nuclear plant in his nation, but this project was aborted when he was overthrown in a coup d’état in 1966.

Contained in: South Africa