(FeaturedNews.com) – Billionaire Elon Musk is concerned about the European Union’s (EU) energy shortfalls. Musk, an advocate for clean, renewable energy, believes deeply that nuclear power is the most effective way to address the situation. As the crisis in Ukraine moves on, and the world continues its clamp-down on Russian exports, the tech tycoon fears Europe won’t be ready.
Musk Responds on Social Media
On Monday, March 6, Musk tweeted that Europe needed to restart its nuclear energy program, citing both national and global security concerns.
Hopefully, it is now extremely obvious that Europe should restart dormant nuclear power stations and increase power output of existing ones.
This is *critical* to national and international security.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 6, 2022
The EU is actively moving towards solar, wind, and other renewable energy sources. It has spent years ramping down production at nuclear facilities and continues to do so even now in a bid to achieve that goal.
Dozens of European Reactors Lie Dormant
Europe has certainly seen its share of nuclear scares. The core meltdown at Chernobyl in the 1980s changed life for the entire continent. Food and water sources were deemed unusable, and the effects of radiation poisoning became all too real.
In 2011, Europe again felt the sting of a nuclear disaster, this time from the far reaches of Japan. The Fukushima nuclear disaster set off a wave of testing across the globe to see if facilities could withstand the force of an unforeseen weather event, earthquake, or tsunami.
Europe’s plants didn’t fare so well. Several countries opted out of their nuclear programs altogether, while Germany is still phasing down. France and the United Kingdom (UK) are steadfast supporters of nuclear energy.
An Energy Vacuum Emerges
One of the side effects of putting all of those reactors to sleep is replacing the power they provide. While European countries work on the infrastructure needed for their new energy policies, they remain heavily reliant on Russian fossil fuels, particularly natural gas.
Musk contends that if the global community is to sanction Russia appropriately, those imposing sanctions shouldn’t be relying on them to fuel their power plants. Nuclear plants still operating in the EU provide about a quarter of the electricity they consume. Musk believes that number should be much higher.
The US Has to Do Its Part
Recently, Musk called on the United States to immediately increase oil and natural gas production to help fill the gap sanctioning Russia’s supply would create. According to Musk, America must play a critical role if the world is going to stand its ground.
The United States and the UK have both since announced bans on Russian oil and natural gas imports. Russian oil makes up about 8% of US imports.
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