A company racing to be among the first to operate a small nuclear reactor in the United States received a vote of confidence from the federal government Friday after encountering recent roadblocks.

The Energy Department approved a $1.4 billion grant to help defray costs for a group of utilities that are the first in line to buy power from the reactors produced by NuScale Power.

The Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems, a group of small, community-owned utilities in six Western states, had previously indicated the group might pull out of the NuScale project unless it received the extra funding from the government.

I'll confess that government funding of projects in the energy industry always sets my teeth on edge. This grant definitely carries the appearance of the federal government picking winners and losers, something that rarely works out well in the long run. It's reminiscent of Washington's incentives and mandates designed to bolster the ethanol industry at the expense of the oil and gas industry, which has proven to be a disaster.

This project, however, has some unique aspects that should probably lead us to tolerate this sort of financial intervention. Ethanol was already a long-proven technology when Uncle Sam stuck his beak into the matter. These SMRs are new, cutting edge technology that may need some short-term incentivizing to demonstrate the viability of the concept.

https://hotair.com/archives/jazz-shaw/2020/10/19/trump-approves-funding-revolutionary-nuclear-power-plant/

Grants

Quote from: joesixpack on October 20, 2020, 08:58:40 AM
Grants

The point of this is "Real Energy" not that bull shit Green crap. This will be small, unobtrusive and cheaper than your standard nuke plant.

There is nothing greener than nuclear power. The SMR combined with conventional nuclear reactors are a licence to print money. Rebuild and electrify the transportation system, and reduce carbon emissions. Most importantly, it preserves coal and petroleum resources for future generations. In future, the uranium fired reactors could be replaced with much safer and more efficient thorium LIFTR's.
The irrational resistance to nuclear power has been an indictment of the educational system and has already cost lives.
Good for President Trump.

Quote from: Tory Potter on October 23, 2020, 11:34:22 AM
There is nothing greener than nuclear power. The SMR combined with conventional nuclear reactors are a licence to print money. Rebuild and electrify the transportation system, and reduce carbon emissions. Most importantly, it preserves coal and petroleum resources for future generations. In future, the uranium fired reactors could be replaced with much safer and more efficient thorium LIFTR's.
The irrational resistance to nuclear power has been an indictment of the educational system and has already cost lives.
Good for President Trump.

Then we could actually justify an electric car.

Amen.

Quote from: Tory Potter on October 24, 2020, 12:16:48 PM
Amen.

I love the idea of an electric car, but not until batteries catch up.

Quote from: Solar on October 24, 2020, 12:58:14 PM
I love the idea of an electric car, but not until batteries catch up.

We will need a new law of physics first....that and we need to figure out how to put 5 gallons of electricity in a gas can....

Electric cars are for the golf course and even then, when given a choice, I go for the ICE ones....

Quote from: Owebo on October 31, 2020, 03:06:28 PM
We will need a new law of physics first....that and we need to figure out how to put 5 gallons of electricity in a gas can....

Electric cars are for the golf course and even then, when given a choice, I go for the ICE ones....

Yep, Lithium was a major break through, but they're about as dependable as a lib.
I live off grid, so I have a lot of excess power I'd love to put to use, but not willing to waste it on faulty technology.

Hell, assuming you save any money at all, the battery for a Tesla is roughly 15 grand not including labor.
There's a reason I bought a 3500 Dodge Cummins, It will outlive me.

Quote from: Solar on October 31, 2020, 04:07:48 PM
Yep, Lithium was a major break through, but they're about as dependable as a lib.
I live off grid, so I have a lot of excess power I'd love to put to use, but not willing to waste it on faulty technology.

Hell, assuming you save any money at all, the battery for a Tesla is roughly 15 grand not including labor.
There's a reason I bought a 3500 Dodge Cummins, It will outlive me.

ahhhh...a diesel....that thing has some horses and torque for sure....myself I am looking at getting a ram 1500.  Preferably a limited with the e-torque.  No sunroof though.  Plenty of get up and go for my needs.

Quote from: Solar on October 31, 2020, 04:07:48 PM
Yep, Lithium was a major break through, but they're about as dependable as a lib.
I live off grid, so I have a lot of excess power I'd love to put to use, but not willing to waste it on faulty technology.

Hell, assuming you save any money at all, the battery for a Tesla is roughly 15 grand not including labor.
There's a reason I bought a 3500 Dodge Cummins, It will outlive me.

Waiting on a new F350 diesel King Ranch with the Tremor package for the farm. Damn China plague messed Ford production up...I worked in DC, not for the .gov but as a mechanical engineer/Lobbyist and the most annoying thing was a dead Tesla blocking traffic...they just sit there useless usually with angry liberal idiots attached to them yelling at whatever earth raping car I was driving as I was laughing at them ....

I'm not off the grid yet with the farm or the bunker house, but I'm thinking about it.  The end is nigh....

Quote from: drifter106 on October 31, 2020, 05:04:15 PM
ahhhh...a diesel....that thing has some horses and torque for sure....myself I am looking at getting a ram 1500.  Preferably a limited with the e-torque.  No sunroof though.  Plenty of get up and go for my needs.

Ok I'm concerned...you and solar both are yaking about Rams....is there something about this forum that turns what appear to be normal Americans into Fiat owners??? 

Quote from: Owebo on October 31, 2020, 05:35:11 PM
Ok I'm concerned...you and solar both are yaking about Rams....is there something about this forum that turns what appear to be normal Americans into Fiat owners??? 

Bought mine before Dodge went wopsided.

Quote from: Solar on October 31, 2020, 06:53:34 PM
Bought mine before Dodge went wopsided.

I did also and I am 3000 miles a way from 300.000 miles on my 250'

Quote from: walkstall on October 31, 2020, 08:20:10 PM
I did also and I am 3000 miles a way from 300.000 miles on my 250'

I'll never make it..