ANSTO's
Australia has one nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights (south of Sydney). It is one of over 200 research reactors located around the world and is used chiefly for the production of medical isotopes—it is not used to generate electricity.
The reactor was in operation between 1958 and 2007, when it was superseded by the Open-pool Australian lightwater reactor, also in Lucas Heights.
Australia has one nuclear plant in Lucas Heights, Sydney, but is not used to produce nuclear power, but instead is used to produce medical radioisotopes. It also produces material or carries out analyses for the mining industry, for forensic purposes and for research.
Inside OPAL
OPAL uses low enriched uranium fuel containing just under 20 per cent uranium-235. In terms of security and nuclear safeguards, this is a distinct advantage over earlier research reactors, some of which required enrichment levels as high as 95 per cent uranium-235.
Nuclear power stations can't be built anywhere in Australia.
They are banned in every state, and in every territory. Such bans were introduced because of community concerns about the health and environmental risks.
About 27 tonnes of uranium – around 18 million fuel pellets housed in over 50,000 fuel rods – is required each year for a 1000 MWe pressurized water reactor. In contrast, a coal power station of equivalent size requires more than two and a half million tonnes of coal to produce as much electricity.
Loy Yang in Victoria is the largest power station in Australia by capacity (consisting of Loy Yang A and Loy Yang B counted together). However, if Loy Yang A and B are counted as separate power stations, Eraring Power Station in New South Wales is Australia's largest.
Eraring at a glance
The station comprises four 720 MW coal fired generator units and one 42 MW diesel generator. This gives it an overall generating capacity of 2,922 MW and makes it Australia's largest power station.
6. Nuclear reactors make unpopular neighbours. Australia would need 25 nuclear reactors to meet a third of its electricity needs by 2050, according to the Australian Government. These nuclear reactors would be built near our coasts and major population centres to be close to water and markets.
Is Chernobyl reactor 4 still burning? Chernobyl reactor 4 is no longer burning. The reactor was originally covered after the disaster, but it resulted in a leak of nuclear waste and needed to be replaced.
This waste is now being temporarily stored by ANSTO at Lucas Heights until a national facility is completed. Australia has accumulated almost 5,000 cubic metres of radioactive waste (around the volume of two Olympic size swimming pools). This does not include uranium mining wastes, which are disposed of at mine sites.
Obviously you can no longer see the actual reactor as it's hiddent underneath the new "sarcophagus" they finished buliding in 2016. However, you can get quite close to the strcture and for those who go inside the power plant, you can actually go inside the Control Room #4, where the accident basically started.
Children and adults alike have been exposed to radiation from the contaminated uranium processing site at Hunters Hill in Sydney (and children are more susceptible to radiation-induced cancers due to their growing bodies). Only in recent years has the contamination come to light after decades of deceit and obfuscation.
Australia has never built a nuclear power station, and we are not currently planning any. In fact, it isn't a legal option – they are banned in every state and territory. However, we do have 33% of the world's uranium deposits and we are the world's third-largest producer after Kazakhstan and Canada.
As a non-nuclear-weapon state, Australia engages with other countries to advocate disarmament and non-proliferation. Australia consistently promotes cooperation within existing disarmament architecture based on the cornerstone Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Queensland consumed around 25% of Australia's total energy consumption in 2020-21 and NSW consumed roughly 24%.
It's not surprising to see that South Australians by far have the highest average electricity kilowatt-hour (kWh) rates across all the states. In fact, South Australians have some of the most expensive electricity in the world!
Most of our electricity is produced from burning black and brown coal at large power stations. Natural gas is the third highest energy source in Australia (after oil and coal).
The political wrangling over nuclear power in Australia has surfaced frequently since its development was outlawed by the Howard government's 1999 Conservation Act.
The Chernobyl disaster occurred on April 25 and 26, 1986, at the Chernobyl nuclear power station in the Soviet Union. It is one of the worst disasters in the history of nuclear power generation.
Some will last us about as long as the sun, while others may run out soon and are thus not sustainable. Breeder reactors can power all of humanity for more than 4 billion years. By any reasonable definition, nuclear breeder reactors are indeed renewable.
Current uranium reserves are expected to be depleted by the end of the century, and new sources of uranium are hard to find. As a result, uranium prices have been steadily rising, with some estimates predicting a doubling of prices by 2030.
What Else Happens During Refueling? Reactors run smoothly and reliably for up to two years at a time, but they need maintenance and inspection.