S&P Global — 2 December 2024
Daily Update: December 2, 2024
The Cost of Europe’s Nuclear Renaissance
By Nathan Hunt
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Following the 2011 nuclear accident at Japan’s Fukushima complex, Europe entered a decade of disinterest in nuclear energy. In 2022, the European energy crisis, exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine war, renewed interest in it. The need for energy security amid geopolitical tensions made gas a less appealing option, while European decarbonization commitments under the Paris Agreement on climate change and the European Parliament classifying nuclear as “green” triggered a reexamination of nuclear energy. Its prospects in Europe are covered in a recent article from S&P Global: “Is Europe Ready for a Nuclear Renaissance?"
While there are existing nuclear power plants in Europe, notably in France, construction of new facilities has been limited in recent decades. There is high variability in attitudes and approaches to nuclear power across Europe. In France, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Poland, construction of new plants is either underway or due to begin shortly. In the Netherlands and Sweden, attitudes toward nuclear energy have become more positive, with law changes that make its development a greater possibility. However, neither country has plans for new facilities. Meanwhile, Germany appears firmly opposed since its decision to cease nuclear generation in April 2023.
Small modular reactors (SMRs) have garnered interest across Europe due to their simplified design, flexible output and lower capital investment. France, Sweden, Italy, the Czech Republic, Romania, the Baltics and Poland are all looking seriously at SMRs as a decarbonized source of energy. However, SMRs are still mostly in the prototype phase, with only four in operation globally.
Datacenters are heavy users of energy, both to power processors and to keep facilities at an optimal temperature for operations. While European regulators have expressed reservations about wholesale AI adoption, datacenters will inevitably expand their footprints and energy needs in Europe. Due to the intermittency issues of most renewables, nuclear power remains a strong option for datacenter power.
The obstacles to nuclear adoption in Europe remain environmental concerns and the massive cost of building plants. New construction runs into the billions of dollars, and financing is difficult to secure in an era of energy transition when energy markets’ futures remain unclear. Solar panels and wind turbines are cheaper to build than nuclear power plants, and the breakeven for investors comes many years earlier.
The Czech Republic is relying on taxpayer support to fund nuclear power construction with a guaranteed cap on end-consumer prices. In the UK, some new facilities are being funded through debt financing, with guarantees for investors related to demand and pricing. While those models have strengths and weaknesses from a credit perspective, they both reflect the immense costs and uncertainties of nuclear power generation.
Today is Monday, December 2, 2024, and here is today’s essential intelligence.
Sustainability Insights: Five Takeaways from COP29: Finance Remains a Thorny Issue
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—Read the article from S&P Global Ratings
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—Read the article from S&P Global Market Intelligence
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—Read the article from S&P Global Market Intelligence
European LNG, Gas Supply Shifts Strengthen 2026 Summer-Winter Backwardation
European natural gas prices for summer 2026 have held their backwardation against their winter 2026 counterpart as sources emphasized improving global supply-demand dynamics later that year. Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, assessed the Dutch TTF summer 2026 contract at Eur34.485/MWh on Nov. 25, while the winter 2026 contract was assessed at Eur34.22/MWh.
—Read the article from S&P Global Commodity Insights
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—Read the article from S&P Global Commodity Insights
November 2024 US Auto Sales Showing Signs of Progress
On an unadjusted volume level, November US auto sales are expected to reach 1.31 million units, a growth of 6% from the year-ago level. This would translate to a seasonally adjusted rate (SAAR) of 15.9 million units, on trend with the 16.0 million unit mark realized in October.
—Read the article from S&P Global Mobility
CERAWeek 2025 — Moving Ahead: Energy Strategies for a Complex World (March 10-14, 2025 | Houston, Texas)
CERAWeek 2025 will focus on the challenges ahead for energy security, supply, and climate ambitions — as well as for markets, infrastructure, directions of policy and the advance of technology including AI — and what this means for all aspects of the industry and beyond. This premier event convenes over 450 C-Suite executives, 80 ministers and top officials, and 325 media representatives, with more than 10,000 participants from over 2,050 companies across 80 countries for dialogue on the agenda ahead as the world enters a new era of energy transition.
—Register for the conference from S&P Global