The global energy sector has faced a major challenge stemming from one of its main contributing sources—the nuclear industry. The long-term effects remain to be seen, but many changes have already occurred around the world as a result of the incident at Fukushima, affecting the nuclear sector as a whole. The accident in Japan has served to create a negative perception of nuclear power, associating it with images of engineers trying and failing to stop a meltdown of the first, second, and then third reactor at Fukushima.

Many initially forecasted that the nuclear sector would decline dramatically as a result of these events. Some countries pulled the plug immediately and announced a phase out of their nuclear energy industries. There is no doubt that this incident will have an impact on the global nuclear sector, and consequently on the future of the global energy market, but the question is to what extent will this be the case?

The immediate aftermath could best be characterized as a general reassessment of nuclear policies, thanks to a fall in public acceptance of nuclear energy in certain countries; however, very few states have actually announced that they are planning to phase out their nuclear programs. Looking at the global picture of the nuclear sector today, most countries continue to operate their reactors with no intention of altering their nuclear course—65 nuclear units remain under construction worldwide, with a further 152 reactors being planned across the globe.