Global Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) Dry Storage Casks Market Report: Trends, Drivers, Restraints And Opportunities
A surge of shutdowns
may be observed in the future for most of the ageing nuclear reactors
in the world. These reactors which have supplied power to millions of
homes in the past have always faced hurdles in terms of public
acceptance. With most nuclear plant owners unwilling to dish out
extra millions for renovation of their old plants, gradual shutdowns
are imminent. With the Fukishima disaster in Japan involving an old
boiling water reactor built in the 70’s, the public sentiment
towards the old nuclear plants is likely to deteriorate. The major
issue closely linked with decommissioning these old nuclear power
plants is the efficient and safe disposal of nuclear waste.
Decommissioning costs of nuclear plants are extremely high, going up
to nearly a billion dollars for larger plants. Efficient storage of
nuclear waste will occupy a majority portion of these costs.
Radioactive half life of wastes ranges up to 16 million years while
they remain hazardous for much longer. Storage of such nuclear spent
fuel (NSF) will ultimately spark the demand for dry storage casks.
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Dry storage casks
are generally the most viable method of storing high level nuclear
waste which has been cooled down to manageable levels. Cooling of
spent fuel requires over a year and sometimes nearly 8 years bringing
down to manageable temperatures. Concrete or steel are the major
materials used for making these casks, which are able to withstand
the harshest of temperature and weather conditions without damage.
Not only do inert gases surround and insulate the spent fuel rods in
these containers, concrete layers are also present to provide
additional radiation shielding to waste handling personnel.
These NSF dry
storage casks should be transportable as well, a feature which is
incorporated into them during manufacturing. With a majority of the
old nuclear power reactors going for decommissioning, thus
approaching their wet pool storage limit for NSF, dry cask demand is
likely to increase significantly in the future.
The market for these
NSF dry cask storages is likely to be driven by certain countries.
Japan with its decision to decommission existing nuclear reactors and
move towards a renewable oriented generation mix can be a potential
market. While other countries have not decided yet to walk on Japan’s
path, long lasting effects of the Fukishima disaster are imminent.
Decommissioning of old reactors might be the general public and
regulatory sentiment in many countries, to be replaced by newer and
more efficient power plants. A major requirement of such dry storage
casks may be observed from the North American region, with both the
U.S. and Canada deciding to shut down and replace a number of their
old reactors.
In the European
market, Germany and Russia are likely to be strong demand drivers for
such dry storage casks. Strong R&D is likely to be required by
the manufacturers of these casks to ensure leak free storage of such
wastes in nuclear storage repositories. As the requirement for newer
and safer repositories increase to dispose of the nuclear wastes,
quality improvements in the casks will become necessary. Major
emerging markets are likely to be observed in the North American and
Asia Pacific regions. Some of the market players involved in the
business of manufacturing SNF dry storage casks are Skoda JS A.S.,
NAC International, Holtec International and Areva among others.
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