Fresh record set for nuclear generation in 2025

Nuclear reactors worldwide generated 2,702 TWh of electricity in 2025, beating the previous year's record of 2,667 TWh, according to the World Nuclear Outlook Report, which also calculates that if all national nuclear targets were achieved, total capacity would more than triple by 2050.

(Image: WNA)

The World Nuclear Association report includes an assessment of progress towards the widely-shared ambition - which 38 countries have signed up to - for a tripling of global nuclear energy capacity by 2050. It also sets out a series of policy recommendations.

Listen to report author Jonathan Cobb discuss the findings on the WNN podcast

Focusing on the existing fleet, the report notes that there has been a recent increase in construction starts, as shown by the chart below, which shows how it has fluctuated over the past 75 years.

(Image: WNA)

It also finds that the reliability of nuclear energy plants remains high across the global fleet and across the life of reactors, even as individual units age. The average capacity factor was 83.7% in 2025 (a capacity factor of 100% would be if a unit generated electricity 24 hours a day 365 days a year).

The capacity factor rises as the age of reactors passes 50 years (Image: WNA)

Looking ahead at the prospects for new nuclear capacity, the report projects that it could reach 1,457 GWe by 2050 if all national targets and goals are achieved and the existing fleet continues to operate. With current operating capacity being 423 GWe, that projected figure would be 200 GWe more than a tripling of the current levels.

New capacity under construction increased to 82 GWe, with eleven reactors starting construction in 2025. The combined total of planned, proposed and potential capacity increased to 416 GWe, reducing the gap between actual projects and government targets, although around 550 GW of proposed capacity by 2050 has yet to be translated into specific projects.

(Image: WNA)

As to where the new capacity would be located, the report found that the largest share of the new capacity would come from the established users of nuclear energy - the USA, China, France, Russia and India.

(Image: WNA)

World Nuclear Association Director General Sama Bilbao y León, said: "This is an extraordinary moment for nuclear energy. Reflecting on another year of record performance, and looking ahead to a future of record ambition, governments are clear: they need much more nuclear energy to address the interconnected challenges of energy security, affordability, competitiveness and climate goals.

"But ambition alone will not deliver 24/7 clean energy. That's why the Association has published recommendations that set the path towards tripling global nuclear energy capacity by 2050. We need to make full use of the existing fleet, complete reactors already under construction, capitalising on the acquired capabilities, commit to the next projects and move from individual projects to sustained programmes of deployment."

As well as reviewing the progress towards individual countries' targets, the report includes a series of policy recommendations for governments, industry, financiers and regulators.

These range from "establishing durable policy and investment frameworks, streamlining regulation and strengthening supply chains, to building the workforce, supporting proven reactor deployment and creating the programme-based delivery models needed". It also highlights that maintaining and extending the existing fleet is the fastest and most cost-effective ways to secure low-carbon electricity.According to World Nuclear Association, "For the rest of this decade, the focus must be on turning national ambitions into credible project pipelines, supported by the institutions, investment, people and industrial capacity needed to deliver them." Fresh record set for nuclear generation in 2025

Read More........ → September 15, 2026

UKAEA, Eni create joint venture for fusion fuel cycle

RH3OVA team, from left to right: Giorgio Ricci Maccarini (CEO), Sophie Davies (CCO), Donald Cockburn (CFO), Iryna Bennett (CTO) (Image: UKAEA)

The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority and Italian multinational energy company Eni SpA have formed a joint venture to deliver specialist consultancy and operational services to the growing global fusion industry.

The joint venture - named RH3OVA and incorporated in the UK - offers end-to-end services across the fuel lifecycle, from early-stage feasibility studies to deployment and operational support.

Deuterium and tritium are fuels commonly used in fusion energy. Deuterium is abundant in nature and extractable from seawater. In contrast, tritium is extremely rare. It is therefore essential to ensure careful and efficient management throughout the entire fuel cycle, from tritium's production and use in energy generation to its recovery from exhaust gases and refinement for re-use.

"Having operated the Joint European Torus, which was the world's most powerful deuterium-tritium fusion machine for more than 40 years, and with 30 years' experience of tritium operations, the UK is a leader in tritium fuel cycle technology," said Stephen Wheeler, Executive Director of Tritium Fuel Cycle at UKAEA. "For fusion to be realised as a commercially viable source of energy, however, this expertise must be scaled beyond the lab.

"RH3OVA offers best in class digital process models validated with real-world, fusion relevant data sets. RH3OVA will combine UKAEA's scientific and operational know-how, with Eni's large-scale industrial capability, and leverage this joint expertise to increase knowledge and understanding across the fusion sector."

Lorenzo Fiorillo, Director Technology, R&D & Digital of Eni, added: "Fusion energy has the potential to redefine the global energy landscape, and at Eni we are committed on multiple fronts to turning this potential into tangible industrial progress. Our partnership with UKAEA is of great strategic value to us and represents a further step in scaling up innovation and translating scientific excellence into real-world solutions.

"Today, with UKAEA, we are continuing our joint commitment for further progress in the fusion energy field, with a particular focus on the fuel cycle for fusion. This builds on our collaboration developing the UKAEA-Eni H3AT Tritium Loop Facility started last year which will be a world-class facility of its kind. At the same time, RH3OVA will respond to the growing demand for specialised technical expertise and integrated engineering services dedicated to the fuel cycle, which will be essential enabling factors for the operation of fusion power plants using deuterium and tritium as fuels."

UKAEA said RH3OVA "strengthens the strategic collaboration between Eni and UKAEA and their joint effort to commercialise fusion energy".In March 2025, UKAEA and Eni entered into a collaboration agreement to jointly conduct research and development activities in the field of fusion energy. The collaboration primarily starts with the construction of the world's largest and most advanced tritium fuel cycle facility. The UKAEA-Eni H3AT Tritium Loop Facility, located at Culham Campus in Oxfordshire, England, will be complete in 2028. It is designed to serve as a world-class facility providing industry and academia with the opportunity to study how to process, store and recycle tritium. UKAEA, Eni create joint venture for fusion fuel cycle

Read More........ → August 17, 2026

Australia hasn’t built an oil refinery in decades. But that could change

Tina Soliman-Hunter, Macquarie University

The Australian government this week announced plans to construct a new large-scale oil refinery in Western Australia. If approved, it would be the first refinery to be built since the 1960s.

The federal government initially touted the idea of a government-backed oil refinery in April. In the months since, Australians have grappled with surging petrol prices triggered by the prolonged US-Iran war.

The federal government, with Western Australia, has now announced it will jointly fund a A$4 million pre-feasibility study into a proposed large-scale oil refinery. This study will assess if Australia needs a new large-scale refinery and, if so, where it should go and how it should be operated.

This announcement raises several crucial questions: what is the government proposing? Could it shore up Australia’s fuel supplies? And what does it mean for emissions reduction?

A country exposed

The prolonged US-Iran war has revealed just how vulnerable Australia’s liquid fuel supply is.

Two decades ago, Australia had eight oil refineries. That number has dwindled to two – Queensland’s Ampol refinery and Victoria’s Viva energy plant – as ageing infrastructure and rising costs made these facilities uneconomical. For these reasons the Kwinana refinery – formerly Australia’s largest oil refinery located just south of Perth – shut down in 2021.

These closures have made Australia extremely reliant on liquid fossil fuel imports. We currently import 90% of our petrol, jet fuel and diesel from Asia. The remaining 10% of liquid fuels come from Australia’s two remaining refineries. Both refineries are remnants of the oil boom of the 1950s and 60s, when several major oil companies scrambled to take advantage of newly discovered Bass Strait oil and a wave of government investment.

But our research shows Australia needed more refineries, even before the US-Iran conflict erupted. This was made clear by the refinery fire at Victoria’s Viva plant in April, which temporarily halted domestic production. However, several factors – including high construction costs, declining domestic crude oil supply and intense competition from Asian mega-refineries – have stopped Australia from building new plants.

All about location

The $4 million pre-feasibility study will determine where a new refinery should be built. The government has identified Western Australia as the most suitable state. But it is yet to confirm exactly where the proposed refinery will go.

There are two main contenders. One is Kwinana, which is close to Perth’s urban energy market and the now-closed Kwinana refinery. However, it’s unlikely to win out given the former refinery site is earmarked for redevelopment as a biofuels hub.

The other option is Karratha in WA’s Pilbara region. This fast-growing city is suitable for two reasons. It’s close to the North West Shelf project, Australia’s largest operating oil and gas development. It’s also where Perdaman, the company slated to construct the proposed refinery, is already building a $6.5 billion fertiliser plant.

Feeding the refinery

For the proposed refinery to work, it requires a steady supply of oil.

Australia produces around 250,000 barrels of light crude oil each day. Most of this oil is exported to Asian refineries, and returns to Australia as liquid fuel.

WA’s northwest shelf region primarily produces gas. This means it offers only limited feedstock – the raw or processed oil needed to make fuels, chemicals or plastics – for a proposed refinery.

It’s possible to redirect northwest shelf oil so it goes to the refinery, instead of being exported. However, Australia’s existing export contracts could make this difficult, and negotiations may be necessary.

An alternative oil source is the Bass Strait. In 2026, the federal government started showing interest in Victoria’s Gippsland basin and the Bass basin, in the waters between Victoria’s southern tip and northern Tasmania. The government is now exploring these basins as potential offshore petroleum sites to gauge if there’s appetite for future exploration licences among petroleum companies.

Looking ahead

If approved, it would take between five to ten years to build a facility of this size, subject to whether approvals are fast-tracked.

If the proposal does go ahead, a new refinery would provide much-needed liquid fuel security in a world of surging energy prices and volatile oil supplies. Depending on its size, the new refinery may exceed the former Kwinana refinery’s daily production of 146,000 barrels of oil. This would reduce Australia’s reliance on imported fuel, and ease the petrol pump pain of all Australians.

But it also begs the question, should Australia keep producing conventional liquid fuels? Our rapidly warming climate demands we shift away from these polluting energy sources. Low-carbon biofuels – renewable fuels made from plants, algae or animal waste – may be one alternative.

Another possible path forward is designing any new refineries so that biofuels can be produced alongside traditional liquid fuels. However, this must be viable from both an environmental and fuel security perspective, and should be a focus of the government’s pre-feasibility study.

Tina Soliman-Hunter, Professor of Energy and Natural Resources Law, Macquarie University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Read More........ → July 22, 2026