A roadmap for meeting international climate and energy goals and bringing the global energy system to net-zero emissions by 2070 would see 15 GW of new nuclear power plants built every year for the next 50 years, according to a new International Energy Agency report. 

Fifteen GW, or 15,000 MW, of new nuclear would be equivalent to about nine EPR plants of the type under construction in France, the UK and Finland, or 11 South Korean APR1400 plants being used at Barakah in the United Arab Emirates. This would be treble the level of nuclear added in 2019.

The report, Energy Technology Perspectives 2020, says that under its roadmap, known as the Sustainable Development Scenario (SDS), nuclear power plays an important role in the transition to clean electricity in emerging economies in Asia, where electricity demand is growing strongly. That region accounts for more than 80% of the growth in global nuclear capacity, which climbs from 415 GW in 2019 to more than 780 GW by 2070.