Comments by "H. " (@LocPH.) on "Voice of America"
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Your example is not representative of the true cost. You don't filter the sea water in some sort of plant, but use "yarns" with absorbents on the ocean floor that naturally, thanks to ocean currents, filter the water. From 2012 to 2017 the price of ocean extracted uranium decreased 4 fold, to $440/kg or about $200/lb. I can't find exact figures for today, but it has been 7 years since then, which means price has dropped even further. Conversely, mined uranium increases in cost every year and it is not in some distant future where it will be more expensive than ocean extracted uranium. Additionally, fuel cost is a small fraction of the total cost of nuclear power, including SMR technology, which has the potential to be cheaper than renewables. Add all the previous + the main point that there's 3 orders of magnitude more uranium in the oceans than on land and we have ourselves a winner. Ocean uranium is a great idea.
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