How MoltexFLEX aims to democratise nuclear energy with a new generation of molten-salt reactors

How did nuclear energy get so expensive? Arriving in the 1950s with the promise of being ‘too cheap to meter’, the technology has grown increasingly complex through the decades. At the same time, nuclear incidents over the years – from Windscale and Three Mile Island to Chernobyl and Fukushima – have precipitated increased safety and containment measures, further driving up costs.

The UK’s next generation of flagship nuclear generation – under construction at Hinkley and Sizewell – have acquired an unfortunate billing as the ‘world’s most expensive power plants’. Hinkley C’s current estimated construction cost has risen to nearly £33bn, and its strike price of £120 MWh (£92.50 in 2013, adjusted for inflation) is around four times that of new solar and wind.

Unlike most renewables, however, nuclear thrives on 24/7 operation, delivering baseload electricity around the clock. As such, it is widely agreed that nuclear will have some role in a future low-carbon energy mix, and its flexibility and high heat output mean it can deliver far more than just electricity. But how do we arrest the spiralling costs that have come to define new nuclear?