Federal Government announces the construction of a new nuclear power plant with completion estimated in the next 10 years

Surprising the nuclear sector, the Federal Government announced the construction of a new nuclear plant that will start operating in the next 10 years, long before the Angra 3 plant

The Federal Government's Decennial Energy Plan 2031 (PDE 2031) foresees the construction of a new nuclear power plant, which will be completed within the next 10 years. The announcement of the nuclear power plant was made by Bento Albuquerque, the Minister of Mines and Energy, at an event in the sector, last Thursday (4th). Planning for the next decade should be announced early next year.

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Brazil will gain new nuclear power plant with operation forecast before Angra 3

At the opening of the annual meeting of the Brazilian Association for Nuclear Activities (Abdan), the Federal Government informed that the construction of the new nuclear power plant in Brazil is expected to start even before the completion of Angra 3, which is expected to have its activities started in 2027 .

The Angra 3 nuclear power plant has a capacity of 10 million MWh per year, enough to supply the demand of 6 million homes. According to the minister, in addition to the construction of Angra 3, scheduled for delivery in 2026 or 2027, the Federal Government is planning a new nuclear power plant in the country.

To this end, the Energy Research Company (EPE), the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the Electric Energy Research Center (Cepel) have already begun complementary studies for the construction of new nuclear power plants in Brazil.

Nuclear energy produces only 3% of the energy generated in Brazil

Currently, nuclear power produces less than 3% of all energy that is produced in the country. Although Bento Albuquerque has already said that this energy source is one of the priorities of the Federal Government, the announcement caught the sector off guard, as the construction of a new nuclear power plant was not expected before the delivery of Angra 3.

The National Energy Plan 2050 (PNE 2050) contemplates up to 10 GW of energy from nuclear sources, however, as it is a long-term plan, it did not encourage the sector's agents.

With the announcement of the construction of this fifth plant, there are already rumors of auctions being held, as is done with renewable energy sources and other energy matrices.

Federal Government has not yet chosen the location of the new plant

One of the points of attention in the expansion of nuclear energy is the fuel that moves the plants, uranium. The exploration of the mineral is a monopoly of the Union and is only allowed to the private sector if there is another mineral associated in large volume.

Extraction will have to expand to meet the growth in demand. The government has not yet planned the possible location where it intends to build the new nuclear power plant. A study carried out in 2010 points to 40 possible locations, the main one located in the municipality of Itacuruba, in Pernambuco.

Angra 1, located in Angra dos Reis (RJ), was the first plant in the country, inaugurated in 1985. The plant has an installed capacity of 640 MW. Angra 2, on the other hand, has a capacity of 1.350 MW and Angra 3, with a capacity of 1.450 MW and are located in the same location.