Spreading nuclear energy in Southern Europe: the large projects in Catalonia

• Autores: Faustino Acosta Ortega
• Localización: Revista de historia industrial, ISSN 1132-7200, Nº. 90, 2024, págs. 105-139
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • The expected growth of electricity demand, jointly with the insufficient capacity of the traditional production technologies (based on hydraulic and thermal power plants), led to the electrical producer companies in Catalonia planning the construction of eight nuclear power units of around 1000 MW each. The consequences of the international oil crisis on energy demand was behind the cutting back of the project a few years after. By the mid 1970s, only four units had received provisional authorization. Contrary to what had happened with first-generation nuclear reactors, the promoter companies were the main agents of the decisions related to site election, technology, and providers, which were only regulated in terms of the compulsory administrative authorization, minimum required national participation, and nuclear safety principles.