"It doesn't make sense to us for either government or industry to devote a lot of resources to pursuing high-risk, low-reward technologies – or technologies that could be even worse than what we have now," Lyman tells CNBC Make It. To build our future on renewables is that fastest, safest, and cheapest way to address climate disruption. What it will take for the U.S. to build a 100% renewable electric grid, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes: ‘Defeat helps you more than success’, Meet the middle-aged millennial: Homeowner, debt-burdened and turning 40, How a 33-year-old earning $226,000 in San Francisco spends her money, Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP), Office of Nuclear Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy, department of nuclear science and engineering, high pressure does not build up inside the reactor, according to analyst estimates cited by Reuters, according to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, stored at the facility where it was generated, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), a non-profit, a declaration that calls for decarbonization through 100% renewable energy. Gates Notes will never share and distribute your information with external parties. December 12, 2016 4 minute read. Bill Gates thinks he’s found one, and it’s called TerraPower. Copy link. But there are lessons from the current crisis that should guide our response to the next one. Helping her advance the geothermal tech is a new $30 million cash infusion from Breakthrough Energy Ventures, the fund backed by Bill Gates and a … Please complete your account verification. On March 18, for instance, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), a non-profit group of 250 scientists and related professionals, issued a 140-page rebuke of "advanced nuclear" reactor designs. The one thing I hope people take away from my climate book. Info. The fight to stop climate change and end energy poverty. Energy Investments Dialogue | Bill Gates | Global Energy Forum. While Whitaker calls it a "significant gain in efficiency" that is "important," Forsberg says it's "not relevant," because it "does not really impact disposal costs.". Despite nuclear power's baneful reputation, it is actually the safest form of power generation when analyzed by deaths per unit of electricity generated, according to Gates. ", In America, the cost of building a conventional nuclear power plant can be in the multibillions. Gates kaschiere damit sein Engagement für die Atomkraft und biete Öl … Tap to unmute. Watch later. Requesting an account deletion will permanently remove all of your profile content. Click the link below to begin the account deactivation process. "But in 2021, it is very clear that we can completely rebuild the energy economy of the world moving forward built on renewable energy alone, with no need for fossil fuels or nukes. I feel lucky that I get to connect with so many people like you. "Most of the advanced reactor developers I have interacted with in the past five years include thermal storage in a conceptual plant layout," says Andrew Whittaker, an engineering professor at the University at Buffalo who researches nuclear structures. Nuclear fission, a process where atoms split and release a large amount of energy, generates a lot of heat. Addressing climate change will require zero-carbon energy sources. Additionally, some campaigns and content may only be available to users in certain areas. Heliogen, the Bill Gates-backed clean energy startup, is bringing its field of mirrors to the Mojave Desert. Here's how TerraPower is building advanced nuclear power plants. Many existing energy options have a built-in advantage of being less expensive than newer green ones. How … A Division of NBC Universal. Gates Notes may send a welcome note or other exclusive Insider mail from time to time. A conversation with the Microsoft cofounder and famed philanthropist about the genius of cement, the thrill of the Impossible Whopper, and the book it took him 10 years to write. "Liquid sodium has certain improved thermochemical properties when compared to water that can change risk profiles and reduce the probability of events that might be more probable in a light water reactor," says Brett Rampal, the director of nuclear innovation at non-profit Clean Air Task Force. Can we keep making things but not emit carbon? (For instance, two units being built at Plant Vogtle in Georgia are expected to cost more than $25 billion, according to analyst estimates cited by Reuters.). Let him spend the $2 billion himself to see if this thing works. "And no one has ever solved the problem with what to do with nuclear wastes.". Finding ways to deliver the energy people need to live healthier lives and climb out of poverty. Игра. "It makes good financial sense. Das EGHAC soll den Übergang in die Wasserstoffwirtschaft beschleunigen – also die Produktionskapazitäten in den Gigawatt-Bereich anheben. Vielleicht sieht er etwas, was wir alle noch nicht sehen. This email is already registered. The hidden costs of unreliable electricity. Enter the email you used to sign up and a reset password link will be sent to you. Деньги. “I now see that meditation is simply exercise for the mind, similar to the way we exercise our muscles when we play sports.”. And they're trustworthy, Forsberg says: "This type of passive safety system has been demonstrated on a large scale. ("Natrium" means "sodium" in Latin.) What Does Bill Gates’ Favorite Energy Guru, Vaclav Smil, Get Wrong? Like many people, Gates' opinion of nuclear power had been tinged by past disastrous accidents such as Three Mile Island and Chernobyl. This can prevent accidents like what happened at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in Japan. Bill Gates fördert sie trotzdem. We will never share or spam your email address. The steam then turns a turbine to produce electricity. "This is enabled by a very precise reactor design process that took advantage of today's high performance computing and advanced materials. Join the Gates Notes community to get regular updates from Bill on key topics like global health and climate change, to access exclusive content, comment on stories, participate in giveaways, and more. It is unclear how cheap biofuels can be but if they are […] ", Natrium technology has the ability to store heat in tanks of molten salt for future use, "much like a battery," Levesque says. Please upload a .jpg or .png image that is under 25MB. Bill Gates should be commended for his new book How to Avoid a Climate Disaster. That storage capability can increase a Natrium Reactor plant's power output from about 345 megawatts to 500 megawatts for five hours, Levesque says. Understanding energy use and technology. Инвестирование. "It is the first nuclear concept to integrate large-scale energy storage capabilities," Levesque says. TerraPower's ability to achieve those goals will be in no small part due to the money and influence of the company's founder. One of my favorite authors explains how energy drives human history. Safe and affordable nuclear power is "a pipe dream" that "never materialized," he says. When Bill Gates started learning about nuclear power innovation, "I was skeptical, but also intrigued," he wrote on his Gates Notes blog in 2019. On Saturday, the billionaire philanthropist released a letterdetailing what he learned in 2018 and what he hopes to accomplish in 2019. This is my personal blog, where I share about the people I meet, the books I'm reading, and what I'm learning. Die Atomenergie ist gefährlich. By the middle of this century, the world will use twice as much energy as we use today. While TerraPower is a leader here, according to Rampal, other advanced nuclear companies are also considering storage. Please check your email and click the link provided to verify your account. Here’s a question you should ask about every climate change plan. "A very large plant is a big risk for a utility," Levesque says. The problem is, that steam can also build up and create pressure inside of a reactor, which has the potential to cause an explosion. Nearly a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture. So TerraPower's Natrium plant uses a different method, pioneered decades ago: liquid sodium as a cooling agent. "The most important factors in developing a new reactor are money and very competent people. Reduce, reuse, retool. Five questions about how and why the climate is changing. Both Howarth and Mann are signatories on a declaration that calls for decarbonization through 100% renewable energy, like wind and solar. Video Ad. Thanks for visiting the Gates Notes. Still others say focusing on nuclear power at all is the wrong approach. David MacKay’s brilliant book is a primer on how we make energy and its impact on the climate. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates wants to change an entire nation’s energy policyin 2019. We'd like your feedback. The image you are trying to upload is either too big or is an unacceptable format. If you’ve changed your mind about deleting your account, you can always hit cancel and deactivate instead. He correctly identifies the need for the world to get to zero carbon by 2050 and the desperate consequences to humanity if we do not. Send me the weekly Top of Mind newsletter. “The agriculture sector is important. "We need an energy miracle," says Bill Gates in this interview with Atlantic editor in chief James Bennet. When the world’s richest entrepreneur says wind and solar will never work, it’s probably time to listen. (Hint: not you). Not you. One of my favorite authors explains how energy drives human history. After reading a paper about a new generation of nuclear reactors built with technical advancements to guard against such accidents, Gates founded TerraPower in 2008 to realize the benefits of these innovations. With more productive seeds we can avoid deforestation and help Africa deal with the climate difficulty they already face. The target cost for a commercial Natrium plant is $1 billion in capital expenditures, according to TerraPower. Porsche AG setzt beim Antrieb auf E-Fuels anstatt E-Autos - Bill Gates ist überzeugt. "A decade ago, perhaps one could still argue we need new nuclear power plants to combat global warming, and that better approaches were hopefully just around the corner," Howarth says. An artist rendering of a TerraPower Natrium power plant. David MacKay’s brilliant book is a primer on how we make energy and its impact on the climate. Das Cleantech-Startup Mainspring Energy hat einen Lineargenerator zur Stromerzeugung entwickelt – und mit diesem Konzept den Erneuerbare-Energien-Giganten NextEra Energy überzeugt. Instead, more federal government spending to improve conventional reactors is a better tactic, according to the UCS. And Levesque, who says he's spent most of his career working with conventional water-cooled reactors, does not object to reinvesting in their maintenance. Energy Investments Dialogue | Bill Gates | Global Energy Forum - YouTube. TerraPower's plants have the capacity to generate enough power to operate a small city, which is the "sweet spot" for utility companies. How energy makes life possible. Levesque envisions that TerraPower will help the United States become a dominant force in nuclear power; as other countries transition their energy grids, "the United States will once again export reactors that set the standard for the world, just as we did for today's conventional reactors," Levesque says. Copy link. Er sagt, uns steht ein Energiewunder bevor. Заработок в интернете.Bill Gates Global Energy Forum. Imagine how much clean power he could produce if he put that kind of money into wind and solar. With no permanent storage solution in use in the U.S., nuclear waste is currently stored at the facility where it was generated in concrete and steel containers. Wenn sich Bill Gates also, mit seiner Linda & Bill Gates Stifung, den Erneuerbaren Energien zuwendet und über die Energieversorgung der Zukunft nachdenkt, sollten wir genau hinhören. The lower cost estimate is partly due to Natrium plants operating at lower pressure (because of the liquid sodium); they do not require the same heavy duty, expensive construction materials, according to Levesque. Instead, its system works via the hot air rising from natural circulation within the system, called a reactor vessel air cooling system, or RVACS, says Levesque. Sie investieren in diese Startups mit einem eine Milliarde Dollar großen Fonds namens Breakthrough Energy Ventures, auch als BEV bekannt. Your password has been reset. For more information see our. There’s good news in this: more energy means better lives and stronger economies. You should recieve an email shortly with instructions on how to reset your password. COVID-19 is awful. Think your New Year’s resolution to hit the gym is daunting? Your Gates Notes account has been deactivated. TerraPower’s test facility is where the company does full-scale physical testing for fuel handling operations. Bill may send you a welcome note or other exclusive Insider mail from time to time. I hope that you'll join the conversation. When Bill Gates started learning about nuclear power innovation, "I was skeptical, but also intrigued," he wrote on his Gates Notes blog in 2019. ", Bill Gates: Nuclear power will 'absolutely' be politically acceptable again — it's safer than oil, coal, natural gasBill Gates: These 5 concepts will help you understand the urgency of the climate crisis, Here's what you need to know about 'the social cost of greenhouse gases'—a key climate metric, Get Make It newsletters delivered to your inbox, Learn more about the world of CNBC Make It, © 2021 CNBC LLC. wind, solar, geothermal) are available.". Michael E. Mann, professor of atmospheric science at Penn State and director of the Penn State Earth System Science Center (ESSC), argues that nuclear energy "comes with unnecessary risks when better alternatives (i.e. Share. Everything you need to know about avoiding the worst climate outcomes. Advanced nuclear reactors however, produces less waste. Your request may take a few days to process; we want to double check things before hitting the big red button. Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg und einige ihrer überreichen Zeitgenossen investieren in zwei Energie-Startups, die eines der größten Probleme Erneuerbarer Energien lösen wollen. In order to unsubscribe you will need to sign-in to your Gates Notes Insider account. And TerraPower's Natrium Reactor plants will be safer still, thanks in large part to a more reliable cooling system for its reactors. Then he'll discover that there's no market for it. But Gates was also interested in the potential of nuclear power as a clean energy. Bill Gates highlights the three key solutions we’ll need for the transition to clean electricity. Every exchange from my latest Ask Me Anything. That’s because their price does not factor in the environmental damage they cause around the world. In a bid to bring carbon-free power to heavy … In the fourth episode of our podcast, we debate whether people should be optimistic about preventing a climate disaster. Despite what Gates and TerraPower see as benefits, the debate over nuclear power is fierce. Bill Gates on Texas energy crisis, divesting from fossil fuel companies - YouTube. That includes engineering, procurement and construction costs of the plant. You can sign back in at any time to reactivate your account and restore its content. Deactivating your account will unsubscribe you from Gates Notes emails, and will remove your profile and account information from public view on the Gates Notes. Bargain wind and solar energy versus costly nuclear Although Gates advocates for the rapid advancement of renewable energy – wind, solar, hydroelectric, bioenergy, geothermal and wave/ tidal – he argues that a smaller, safer generation of nuclear plants must also be coaxed along. My new book about climate change and the solutions we need is available now. We’re sorry to see you go. After an earthquake shut down the plant's reactor, its back-up cooling system failed. Once signed in just go to your Account Settings page and set your subscription options as desired. Wind and solar power generation is expanding around the globe at record rates. Bill Gates thinks the focus on renewable energy is unwarranted in efforts to reduce global emissions. Auch Kooperationen sind angedacht – ein … Breakthrough Energy Ventures, the clean-tech venture capital fund led by Bill Gates, has raised $1 billion for a second round of investments after backing 45 startups with its first billion. Breakthrough Energy is a network of entities and initiatives, including investment funds, nonprofit and philanthropic programs, and policy efforts linked by a common commitment to scale the … "Investment to address the shortcomings of conventional reactors would have a higher chance of success because there is a large base of operating experience and experimental data that researchers can draw upon," Lyman says. Bill Gates setzt damit über seinen Fonds Breakthrough Energy Ventures ein klares Signal für grünen Wasserstoff in Europa. "The most important factor is that Bill Gates is behind this," principal research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology department of nuclear science and engineering Charles Forsberg tells CNBC Make It. Long-duration energy storage startup Form Energy has confirmed details of its recently reported Series C investment round, with Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures among continuing investors. TerraPower plants are also smaller than conventional ones, which is "important for lowering the capital cost" Levesque says. "We envision a 2050 grid that is powered by very significant wind and solar power, but is complemented by" Terra Power nuclear reactors, TerraPower president and CEO, Chris Levesque, tells CNBC Make It. Who will suffer most from climate change? Share. The size also makes TerraPower plants attractive to utility companies "looking to invest in a nuclear power plant to plug into their existing power grid," says Levesque. By clicking "Continue" you agree to the Gates Notes. Bill Gates lehnt dabei Elektromobilität nicht komplett ab. Bill Gates needs $80 million in taxpayer funding? Lowering the Green Premiums is the single most important thing we can do to avoid a climate disaster. Enter a new email. And "investment in nuclear likely crowds out investment in the safer alternative (renewable energy)," he says. Radioactive waste, a byproduct of nuclear fission, "produce fatal radiation doses during short periods of direct exposure," according to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. How we can cut carbon emissions by using less stuff. "This solves a real challenge utilities face as they plan for the long term and work to achieve decarbonization goals.". Thank you for being a Gates Notes Insider. Join the Gates Notes community to access exclusive content, comment on stories, participate in giveaways, and more. Info. Moving on to advanced reactors like Natrium allows transformational improvements in economics and safety," he says. Selected by the U.S. federal government to demonstrate the viability of nuclear power through its Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP), TerraPower aims to build "fully functional advanced nuclear reactor within 7 years of the award," according to the Office of Nuclear Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy. "If nuclear power is to play a larger role to address climate change, it is essential for new reactor designs to be safer, more secure, and pose comparable or—better yet—lower risks of nuclear proliferation and nuclear terrorism than the existing reactor fleet," says Edwin Lyman, Director of Nuclear Power Safety at the Union of Concerned Scientists in Washington, DC, in a statement released with the report. We will never share your information. In response to the UCS report, Levesque re-emphasizes the utility of the safety measures TerraPower's Natrium plant employs. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates finally revealed the reasons behind his massive purchase of farmland: seed science and biofuel development. Liquid sodium has a higher boiling point and can absorb a lot more heat than water, which means high pressure does not build up inside the reactor. Beyond that, TerraPower's cooling system does not rely on any outside energy source to operate in the event of an emergency shutdown of a reactor. Click verification link sent to this email address or, If you would like to permanently delete your Gates Notes account and remove it’s content, please. We should discuss soil as much as we talk about coal. "But the fact is, light water reactors are based on 50-plus-year-old technology, and only incremental improvements can now be made. Hans-Josef Fell, der Präsident der Energy Watch Group, warnt vor den angekündigten Investitionen des Milliardärs Bill Gates in den Klimaschutz. Such "passive" cooling systems, which rely on things like natural circulation or gravity, "are at the heart of advanced reactor designs and reduce the risk and severity of accidents," Rampal says. Form Energy CEO and co-founder Mateo Jaramillo recently told news agency Reuters that his company had closed the funding round with more than US$70 million raised . A secretive startup backed by Bill Gates has achieved a solar breakthrough aimed at saving the planet. Nuclear power, which has been around since the 1950s, "has proven to be very slow to deploy, very expensive, and fraught with dangers," says Robert W. Howarth, professor of ecology and environmental biology at Cornell University. Are you sure you want to deactivate your account? Please continue to the log in page. David MacKay’s brilliant book is a primer on how we make energy and its impact on the climate. You are now unsubscribed from receiving emails. "Despite the hype surrounding them, none of the non-light-water reactors on the drawing board that we reviewed meet all of those requirements.". |. Our goal is to reduce the Green Premium through programs, investments, and policies that help bring down the costs of clean technologies, so consumers and industries will use them. Shopping. Please allow for 24 hours for the deactivation to fully process. Who will suffer most from climate change? Shopping. But it also means the world needs a new energy supply—one that doesn’t contribute to … Select interests to personalize your profile and experience on Gates Notes. Please verify email address. Sorry, we were unable to unsubscribe you at this time. Climate change could be worse. Established in 2015 by Bill Gates and a coalition of private investors concerned about the impacts of accelerating climate change, Breakthrough Energy supports the innovations that will lead the world to net-zero emissions. "They relied on pumps that had to be powered by diesel generators. When [a subsequent] tsunami disabled the diesels, they lost all cooling to the reactor, which led to melting and the further problems," Levesque says. Bill Gates talks about the future of energy usage and his investments in alternatives to fossil fuels. Learn what we need to do to build a path to a carbon-free future. Nearly 1 billion people around the world don’t have access to electricity. Watch later. Thus the used fuel, also called 'spent' fuel, occupies 2/3 less volume than today's reactors, per gigawatt-hour of power generated," he says. „Elektroautos überzeugen auf der … By Bill Gates. Bill Gates at TerraPower with with a mock-up of metal fuel pin bundles. Bill Gates brings both to the project.". Davon könnten Elektrolyseur-Hersteller wie Nel Hydrogen, Siemens oder Sunfire nachhaltig profitieren. Experts are mixed on whether this innovation is useful however. (The technology is similar to that used in solar plants, which use the technique to store power for when the sun is not shining.). In conventional nuclear power plants, called light-water nuclear reactors, water absorbs that heat, turning it to steam. Das Technologie-Magazin Tech-Insider hat es getan und mit „Visioneer-Bill“ ein Interview geführt. The UCS even recommends the Department of Energy (DOE) suspend its jointly funded ARDP demonstration project (in which TerraPower is a particpant) until regulatory agencies determine what kind of prototyping is necessary, and calls on the DOE to have an independent commission to review the project. That includes Natrium technology, which utilizes radioactive uranium fuel (which powers nuclear reactors) much more efficiently and more completely than conventional plants, according to Levesque.