Nuclear Power: Climate Fix or Folly?

The report contends that nuclear power is economically unviable, citing soaring capital costs and a lack of private investment. It argues that decentralized 'micropower'—including wind, solar, and cogeneration—alongside end-use efficiency, provides a more cost-effective means of displacing CO2 emissions and enhancing energy security. The authors assert that nuclear power's slow deployment and high financial risk make it a liability for urgent climate action, suggesting that resources should instead be shifted toward distributed energy resources.

• Nuclear power is economically uncompetitive, with capital costs rising significantly due to the atrophy of global infrastructure for reactor construction and operation rather than commodity price increases.
• Private capital markets avoid new nuclear projects, leaving development to central planners and public funding; even substantial U.S. government subsidies and loan guarantees have failed to attract significant private investment.
• Nuclear power is less cost-effective at displacing CO2 than its competitors; spending on end-use efficiency can protect the climate 10 to 20 times more effectively per dollar than spending on nuclear power.
• Nuclear power presents reliability risks due to the necessity of instant shutdowns during power failures and slow restart times, whereas a diversified portfolio of distributed resources is more resilient.
• Decentralized 'micropower'—including wind, solar, and cogeneration—and 'negawatts' (saved electricity) are growing faster and are more scalable than nuclear power, already surpassing it in global capacity and output.
• The expansion of civilian nuclear power facilitates the proliferation of nuclear weapons by providing the necessary materials, equipment, and knowledge under a civilian guise.

APA

Lovins, A. B., Sheikh, I., & Markevich, A. (2009). Nuclear Power: Climate Fix or Folly? RMI. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_E09-01_NuclPwrClimFixFolly1i09.pdf

Chicago

Lovins, Amory B., Imran Sheikh, and Alex Markevich. Nuclear Power: Climate Fix or Folly? RMI, 2009. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_E09-01_NuclPwrClimFixFolly1i09.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Lovins |first1=Amory B. |last2=Sheikh |first2=Imran |last3=Markevich |first3=Alex |title=Nuclear Power: Climate Fix or Folly? |publisher=RMI |date=2009 |url=https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_E09-01_NuclPwrClimFixFolly1i09.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{lovins2009nuclear, author = {Lovins, Amory B. and Sheikh, Imran and Markevich, Alex}, title = {{Nuclear Power: Climate Fix or Folly?}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2009}, url = {https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_E09-01_NuclPwrClimFixFolly1i09.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }