1、March 2023Electric Power&Natural Gas PracticeWhat will it take for nuclear power to meet the climate challenge?Nuclear power can be an important part of the energy transition.Scaling the industry to meet increasing electricity demand will require leaders to mobilize quickly and efficiently.This arti

2、cle is a collaborative effort by Chad Cramer,Bill Lacivita,Jennifer Laws,Muhammad Nabi Malik,and Geoff Olynyk,representing views from McKinseys Electric Power&Natural Gas Practice.The power sector will play a critical role in the net-zero transition.Power generation contributes about 30 percent of g

3、lobal CO2 emissions,primarily from combustion of fossil fuels.Many governments,utilities,and other companies are investing heavily in renewable sources of energy.As rapidly as renewables have scaled up in recent years,its unclear whether wind and solaralong with other emerging solutions,including ca

4、rbon capture,long-duration energy storage,and hydrogencan grow fast enough to meet net-zero targets and projected increasing electricity demand.Nuclear power is a proven technology that can be called upon to play a bigger role in decarbonization.Its ability to scale up to meet rising demand,however,

5、is in question.According to McKinseys Global Energy Perspective 2022,global power consumption could triple by 2050(Exhibit 1).The expected increase in demand will stem largely from a shift away from fossil fuels toward electrification of end uses,including transportation(electric vehicles),building

6、operations(electrifying heat),and industrial processes(low-carbon steelmaking).The resulting need for new low-carbon and zero-carbon generation will be unprecedented in the history of the global electrical grid.Exhibit 1Web Exhibit of Global electricity demand,thousands of terawatt hours1Including d