Giovt Opts For Nuclear Energy

The government has resolved to opt for nuclear energy as an alternative source of power in a move to avert any future energy crisis in the country.

The decision was taken after consultations between Cabinet and officials of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC), according to a source at the GAEC.

Consequently, the source said, the government would hold a press conference on April 19, 2007 to outline the measures it would take to bring the project on stream.

It said the government would engage in intensive diplomacy to convince the international community that the nuclear energy would be used only for peaceful purposes, not to develop nuclear weapons.

According to the source, the government would have to sign about 10 conventions before the country could be certified to use nuclear energy to generate power.

On the domestic front, it said, the government would educate Ghanaians on the benefits of nuclear energy and the need to opt for it as an alternative source of energy.

The source said the initial investment in the purchase of nuclear reactors was high but the operation and maintenance cost was lower than that of hydro.

It said nuclear reactors could store fuel for between 10 and 15 years and indicated that nuclear energy was environmentally friendly.

The source said the decision for Ghana, a developing country, to opt for nuclear energy now was long overdue, since developed countries and other growing economies, such as China, Malaysia and India, had been using the technology to generate power for their domestic and industrial needs for years now.

It said besides the generation of power, nuclear energy could be used to remove salt from sea water to make it pure for consumption.

Story by Musah Yahaya Jafaru