– Several technology companies with green ambitions, such as Microsoft and Google, now see that they cannot achieve their goals without nuclear power, explains Asbjørn Torvanger from the climate institute Cicero. The climate scientist believes that nuclear power is necessary if the energy needs of the data centers are to be met. Photo: Alexander Slotten / news He says that the enormous growth in AI leads to the large-scale construction of energy-intensive data centres. The International Energy Agency says more than 7,000 data centers are now in operation or under development worldwide. This is an increase from 3,600 in 2015. The demand for energy from AI data centers now exceeds the capacity to build new wind and solar power plants. In the USA, McKinsey predicts that the energy demand for data centers will grow by around ten percent each year until 2030. Illustration: Alexander Slotten / news According to a study, KI will use more energy than the whole of Argentina already by 2027. Necessarily evil Microsoft is among the companies that are now betting hardest on nuclear power. – With our emissions growth where it is, we need continued development of clean, reliable resources, and nuclear power fits that description, said Adrian Anderson, who is responsible for sustainability at Microsoft at a conference this summer. Microsoft is investing heavily in artificial intelligence. In order to cover the energy demand this requires, they are now sniffing the core. Photo: Reuters In Norway, attitudes towards nuclear power have become increasingly positive. New figures from Kantar’s climate barometer show that Norwegians have become two percentage points more positive about nuclear power since last year. Now 53 percent of the population has a positive attitude. In 2014, it was only 10 percent. Torvanger at Cicero says that many Norwegians now see nuclear power as a necessary evil. Torvangen believes Norwegians will find nuclear power more and more tempting the more expensive our electricity becomes. Photo: Alexander Slotten / news He explains that Norway is a favorite country for the big tech giants to build some of the 3,000 new data centers they need, because so much of our energy is already green. But these data centers are helping to drive the already historically high electricity prices in Norway further up. – The development of more and more data centers that consume more energy, and higher electricity prices in Norway, can result in nuclear power appearing to voters and consumers as a necessary evil, says the climate researcher. AI must be run on nuclear power if the climate targets are to be met. Illustration: Alexander Slotten / news He points out that Google is building out wind power to cover some of the electricity consumption for their data center in Norway. But even if it is realised, it will in no way cover their needs, he explains. Google is building a large data center outside Skien in Telemark. Photo: NTB Wind power also leads to natural encroachment, which further increases resistance. – Many people prefer nuclear power to interventions in nature such as wind turbines, which are not always popular. – Nuclear power can then be defended as the least desirable alternative. Reopening disaster power plants in the US Microsoft recently entered into a 20-year agreement with Constellation Energy to reopen a nuclear power reactor in the US. Three Mile Island will now supply energy to Microsoft. Photo: BRADLEY C BOWER / AP The reactor, called Three Mile Island, is previously known to have been the site of the largest nuclear disaster in American history. – This is the first time that one private player buys up all the energy from a nuclear power plant. It is also not common for reactors that have been shut down to reopen, as in this case, where it was closed in 2019 because it was no longer profitable, says Elisabeth Nissen Eide. Nissen Eide writes about the consequences of the AI boom. Photo: Alexander Slotten / news She is a former sustainability manager in an IT company, and is now writing a book about the climate consequences of artificial intelligence. Eide believes that this type of investment in nuclear power can potentially have positive effects for the green shift, if strict environmental and safety assessments set the guidelines for development. But she is still worried about the total consumption that KI will be responsible for. Let’s be honest – It is clear that it gives a boost to low-emission energy, and that is of course positive. After all, the goal is to reach a zero-emissions society, says Eide. But she points out that in several countries, including the United States, we have seen that coal-fired power stations are kept open because so much energy is needed for artificial intelligence. Coal-fired power stations are kept alive to provide energy for KI. Photo: AP – It’s the wrong direction. If we are to achieve the climate targets, we cannot continue with that, she points out. Tech giants such as Microsoft, Google and Amazon have set themselves ambitious renewable and zero-emission targets. But at the same time, Microsoft has increased its emissions by 29 per cent since 2020, and Google by 48 per cent since 2019. – They say that the investments in nuclear power are made to reach the emission targets, and that may be true, because consumers are beginning to demand climate-friendly solutions. But the companies must talk about how much energy AI actually requires and what emissions we will see as a result of the increased use of artificial intelligence. Investment boom 14 of the world’s largest banks and financial institutions, including Bank of America, Barclays and Morgan Stanley, have this year committed to increasing support for nuclear power, with the goal of tripling the world’s nuclear power capacity by 2050. Many banks now want more investment in nuclear power welcome. Illustration: Alexander Slotten / news This support from the banks can contribute to normalizing nuclear power as part of the solution to the climate challenges. The banks can contribute by offering direct loans, project financing, arranging bond sales, or connecting companies with private investors. More disadvantages Oscar Njaa in Bellona believes that today’s nuclear power technology still has major disadvantages. Njaa points out that current nuclear technology has some important disadvantages. Photo: Bellona – It is by no means certain that nuclear power will play a larger role in our energy systems in the medium term, but development primarily depends on whether new technology can reduce some of the disadvantages of nuclear power, he says. The most obvious disadvantage is the risk of radioactive contamination in the event of accidents and in connection with the handling of radioactive waste. But Njaa also points out that civil nuclear technology can be used to develop nuclear weapons. There is also the risk of malicious acts, terrorism and war that could affect nuclear installations and lead to radioactive contamination. This video grab, taken from footage released by the Ukrainian president’s press office on August 11, 2024, shows a fire at a cooling tower associated with the Russian-controlled nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine. Photo: AFP – The war in Ukraine has shown that the international community has significant challenges in securing nuclear facilities in a war situation, he points out. – We have limited time to reach our climate targets, and must invest in the solutions that we know we can put in place now, in order to cut emissions as quickly as possible. Published 16.10.2024, at 11.45
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Nuclear power + AI = true? – Archive
