Renewed Interest in Nuclear Power

The rising demand for electricity due to increase in global population coupled with better standard of living of people has contributed to increased greenhouse gas emissions as compared to pre-industrial levels. To limit the impacts of climate change and reduce dependency on already depleting reserves of fossil fuels, there is a growing interest worldwide in environmentally sustainable energy generation sources for providing power to industries, commercial establishments as well as houses. This chapter deliberates on the various events that have shaped the international perception of nuclear energy, pros and cons of nuclear power vis-a-vis other electricity generation systems and provides an assessment on the basis of technical, economic, life cycle, social and environmental parameters. Also discussed are the various non-electric applications of nuclear energy, average life-cycle carbon dioxide-equivalent emissions for different electricity generators as well as the importance of nuclear energy in achieving climate goals as per the Paris Agreement.