Toward The Deployment Of Nuclear Cogeneration Projects - Issues And Considerations

Nuclear cogeneration can lead to higher overall energy efficiency and enhanced utilization of a nuclear power plant. It enables diversification of the role they play in the energy market (i.e., heat and transportation along with power generation) and contributes to its decarbonization. The deployment of nuclear cogeneration can be accelerated if several issues between vendors and users involved in such projects are properly identified and addressed. This includes formulating suitable business models for the project, infrastructure development, and managing stakeholders' involvement. The stakeholders in cogeneration projects include the utilities for electricity, heat, water and others, the regulatory bodies, and suppliers and contractors for nuclear and the industrial processes, along with the general public and other commercial and industrial users of the cogenerated products and services. Public acceptance is expected to play a major role in the successful deployment of nuclear cogeneration projects. Stakeholders' interaction at the pre-project stage can include activities related to siting, target utilization of the product or cogenerated commodity, status and selection of technologies for the coupled industrial plant, regulatory implications and financial constraints, and considerations among other elements. This paper assesses some of these issues with a focus on nuclear cogeneration for seawater desalination. It also discusses the licensing consideration and issues, and proposes a licensing scheme for nuclear cogeneration projects.