Nuclear plants on the docket in Bangladesh and SAUDI ARABIA

Saudi Arabia studies nuclear power (Nuclear Engineering International)

Saudi Arabia Announces Nuclear Plant, And It Could Have Huge Consequences For U.S.-Iran Relations

Bangladesh approves nuke power deal with Russia

It makes sense to build a nuclear plant in Bangladesh; the country is poverty-stricken and chronically underpowered; nuclear energy can be one step in significantly improving the country's abysmal standard of living. Interesting that Russia won the contest to build the plant. Well, that's probably good for Russian's somewhat struggling industrial economy.

But Saudi Arabia, oil kingdom of the world? This is more interesting (perhaps even troubling). One might sense the the sheikhs are getting the message on peak oil and maybe even climate change, and are looking forward toward a much lower carbon future. Since they are besotten with petrodollars, it makes sense now to invest them into energy that can carry the kingdom forward, rather than holding the dollars now and in the future having to import energy rather than export it. Given what's being done over in the Sahara, I sure think the Saudis should multi-mix it and do both solar and nuclear, which I think is a prime strategy for a lot of places with abundant sun (Ozzies, you listenin' ?) Another trend that the sheikhs might be seeing is the slowly growing chorus for energy/carbon taxes, and because that would encourage decreased consumption, it would eventually lower the money flowing in as the amount of oil flowing out decreased.