Overview of more accurate nuclear energy modeling (Only in Lithuanian, English summary available)

In response to the global challenge of climate change and to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and strengthen energy security and independence, more and more countries are setting economy decarbonisation targets, and nuclear energy can be an important part of these targets. However, its contribution depends on various factors such as the availability of new technologies, the riskof project implementation, economic competitiveness and public policies.
The capital costs of new nuclear power plants and the assumptions of CO pricing have the greatest influence on the choice of nuclear energy in the energy modelling scenarios. However, technical and economic feasibility are not sufficient without public acceptance, and this needs to be explicitly considered when planning the development of the energy sector.

The nuclear power plants modelled are already capable of adjusting their output (ramping up/down) 2 times a day with modern technologies. New reactors can operate at 20%–100% capacity. Small modular nuclear reactors are not yet included in the simulated scenarios due to the lack of information on their technical parameters and costs. Therefore, it is suggested to exclude them in the modelling of scenarios up to 2040 due to too much uncertainty.