Nuclear power is not a prevalent source of energy in Latin America. Currently, there are just seven nuclear power reactors in operation, producing just 2.2% of total energy consumption in Latin America: three in Argentina, two in Brazil and two in Mexico. However, it seems that nuclear power around the Western hemisphere is driven by a desire to find alternatives to low fossil fuel prices and CO2 emissions altogether. Are we talking about a nuclear revival? Lilian Sol Cueva takes a look. Argentina and Brazil started their nuclear efforts in the 1970s and 1980s under right-wing military dictatorships that were supported by Canada and Germany, with whom they had signed nuclear agreements. In the early 1990s, after the fall of the military dictatorships, both countries engaged in peaceful nuclear power cooperation plans to generate electricity. Meanwhile, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Mexico crystallized its nuclear efforts as an option to diversify its energy matrix. In August 2006, Argentina’s government adopted a nuclear energy policy that encompassed the development of three new nuclear power plants and a USD … Continue reading Has nuclear power been abandoned in Latin America?