How and when 4

Fast reactors exhibit two major advantages over classical thermal reactors: sustainability and waste minimization. The deployment of 4th generation nuclear reactors depends on economical, industrial and political issues. We feel that the waste radiotoxicity reduction argument, although very crucial and socially sensitive, could not by itself justify implementing a new reactor system including a dedicated reprocessing scheme. But the foreseen tension of the uranium market may urge on developing fast reactor systems. Putting aside politics, we tentatively try to answer a very simple question: At which uranium price will it be economically competitive to build a fast reactor instead of a light water one? The levelized cost of nuclear electricity is analyzed and split into its different components (investment, fuel supply, fuel cycle, etc…). Assuming some minimal and reasonable hypotheses, fast reactors costs are compared with light water ones. The uranium price necessary to compensate for the higher investment cost of fast reactors is then deduced. One major conclusion that can be drawn from our study may be summarized as follows: if the uranium market price maintains its present level for a long period of time, fast reactors are already today an economically attractive option