How subs will change nuclear power debate

The AUKUS submarine deal is set to change the way nuclear power is debated in Australia, proponents of the technology say. Vote, and have your say.

The arrival of nuclear powered submarines under the AUKUS pact will be a game-changer for the debate on nuclear energy in Australia, proponents of the technology say.

Rob Parker from the advocacy group Nuclear for Climate Australia said the ready acceptance of the AUKUS pact showed the public’s increasing comfort with nuclear power.

“It’s been blatantly obvious that with the announcement you do not have 100,000 people in the streets, as you had for example with the Iraq war. This is not spinning people’s wheels in opposition to it,” he said.

Mr Parker said the Australian public were “already ahead of the pollies” in terms of their readiness to accept nuclear energy as an option.

“The submarine issue will warm them up,” he said. “I give talks about every week now on nuclear energy and I have been seeing over the past two years a steady transition. I almost never get the frenetic opposition (I) used to see in audiences maybe a decade ago.”

Dr John Harries from the Australian Nuclear Association said the development of a facility for the storage and disposal of high level radioactive waste generated by the submarines could help answer one of the primary objections to the development of nuclear power in Australia.

“It will remove one of the issues that’s been raised,” he said.

The Opal Reactor core at the Lucas Heights research facility outside of Sydney. Picture: Craig Greenhill

Last year the Lowy Institute’s long-term tracking poll on attitudes towards nuclear power showed for the first time a slim majority of Australians (52 per cent) now support ending the ban on nuclear power. This was up from 47 per cent in 2021.

A parliamentary committee is currently investigating a bill introduced by Nationals Senator Matt Canavan last September which would overturn the 1998 law banning nuclear power. The committee is due to report on May 8.

In its submission to the enquiry, the Minerals Council of Australia stated: “Now that Australia has committed to building nuclear-powered submarines, Australia will need to develop the skills and expertise to support the new fleet. This capacity could also support the development of SMRs (small and medium sized reactors).”

The delivery of a “mid-range” 300 megawatt nuclear reactor in Australia “should be considered as reasonably achievable within the next decade,” the MCA stated in its submission.

Rob Parker, spokesperson for the group Nuclear for Climate Australia. Picture: Supplied

Dr John Harries from the Australian Nuclear Association. Picture: Supplied

The office of Opposition Energy spokesperson Ted O’Brien did not reply to requests for comment yesterday, but on Tuesday Liberal leader Peter Dutton reiterated comments that Australia should have “a sensible, mature debate about nuclear energy”.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen slammed the idea that the AUKUS deal would re-open the debate about nuclear power, saying it would be a “particularly bizarre discussion” as nuclear was “the most expensive form of energy available” and it would be particularly costly in Australia.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Opposition energy spokesman Ted O'Brien. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

“We’d be starting from scratch without the infrastructure and the resources necessary to underpin a nuclear industry,” Mr Bowen said. “Nuclear power plants are very expensive. They run over budget, they run overtime. Mr Dutton can go off on this fantasy frolic if he wants. We’ll remain focused on the job of introducing more of the cheapest form of energy, the cheapest form of energy, which is renewables.”

News Corp contacted the offices of crossbench MPs Monique Ryan, Zoe Daniel, Kylea Tink, Helen Haines and Zali Steggall to ask if they would support or oppose moves to overturn the ban on nuclear energy. A spokesperson for Goldstein MP Zoe Daniel said she had no comment, while Warringah MP Zali Steggall said the adoption of nuclear submarines did not change her view, and she still supported the moratorium on nuclear power.