Govt scientist says nuclear power unlikely before 2045

Namibia's nuclear power ambitions will take at least two decades to materialise, with the mines and energy ministry indicating the country is not set to have a plant operational before 2045.

President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah first publicly advanced the idea in April 2025 during a visit to Rössing Uranium Mine, where she called on Namibia to begin moving toward establishing a nuclear power plant and to identify international partners.

The president argued that the country must leverage its uranium resources for domestic energy generation and industrial development.

Nandi-Ndaitwah reinforced her position in her 2025 State of the Nation Address, saying Namibia would initiate discussions on nuclear energy development as part of efforts to diversify the energy mix and add value to its natural resources.

The push gained further traction in March this year, when she met with Russian deputy prime minister Yury Trutnev in Windhoek, where nuclear energy cooperation was part of broader discussions on resource beneficiation and long-term energy security.

However, technical assessments within government have since painted a more conservative timeline.

Sobering timeline

Mines and energy ministry chief geoscientist Nortin Titus said the ministry conducted an internal integrated workshop last year to assess when a nuclear power plant could realistically be delivered.

He outlined the findings in April in Windhoek at the Namibia International Energy Conference, where he spoke on a panel discussing Namibia’s future energy mix alongside NamPower chief operating officer Ben Mingeli and the Electricity Control Board's CEO, Robert Kahimise.

“In 2025, we had an integrated workshop on when possibly we could see a nuclear power plant,” Titus said.

He said the outcome of that process highlighted the scale of preparation required, including regulatory systems, skills development and infrastructure.

“And considering the preparatory work that we need to do, skills development and construction of a plant, a realistic value is 2045,” he said, underscoring the long-term outlook of the ambitious project.

Significant capital investment

The timeline places Namibia’s nuclear ambitions roughly 19 years away, significantly longer than projections seen elsewhere on the continent.

“Most of the timelines of every African country have been five years, seven years, or 10 years with no nuclear infrastructure,” Titus explained.

Despite the long horizon, he said nuclear remains strategically relevant due to its pricing stability.

“With nuclear power, the amount of or the cost of uranium per pound does not influence the cost of electricity,” he said.

Panellists, however, cautioned that nuclear development comes with substantial upfront costs.

“You get what you pay for. The upfront costs are very high,” Titus said.

Mingeli said even small modular reactor projects would require significant capital investment.

“The capital expenditure for that project is already a billion US dollars," he said.

With nuclear development still years away, Namibia is expected to rely on a mix of gas-to-power, renewable energy and imports to meet demand in the near term.

Local uranium output

Namibia is one of the world’s leading uranium suppliers, with current output ranging between about 6 000 and 7 300 tonnes per year, accounting for roughly 10% of global production.

Three major operations – Rössing Uranium Mine, Husab Mine and Langer Heinrich – drive production.

Husab alone is capable of producing more than 6 000 tonnes annually at peak capacity, making it one of the largest uranium mines globally.

By 2030, Namibia could have between four and five uranium mines in operation if projects such as Bannerman Energy’s Etango development and Deep Yellow’s Tumas project advance toward production.

Despite this resource base, Namibia remains heavily reliant on imported electricity, sourcing between 40% and 60% of its power from the Southern African Power Pool.

According to the Namibia Statistics Agency (2025), Namibia imported 56.1% of its electricity in September 2025, with local generation accounting for 43.9% of the total supply.

The NSA reported total electricity supply at 413 269 MWh for the month, underscoring the country’s continued reliance on imported power to meet demand.

According to the NSA, the mining sector accounted for about 23.6% of electricity consumption, based on domestic electricity sales data.

With total electricity supplied to the domestic economy reaching 413 269 megawatt-hours in September 2025, this suggests mining accounts for roughly 90 000 to 100 000 megawatt-hours per month.