  A long-term strategy based on existing technological, ecological, economical,
and geopolitical realities is urgently needed to develop a sustainable energy
economy, which should be designed with adaptability to unpredicted changes in
any of these aspects. While only a highly diverse energy portfolio and
conservation can ultimately guarantee optimum sustainability, based on a
comparison of current primary energy generation methods, it is argued that
future energy strategy has to rely heavily on expanded coal and nuclear energy
sectors. A comparison of relative potentials, merits and risks associated with
fossil-fuel, renewable, and nuclear technologies suggests that the balance of
technologies should be shifted in favor of new-generation, safe nuclear methods
to produce electricity, while clean-coal plants should be assigned to
transportation fuel. Novel nuclear technologies exploit fission of uranium and
thorium as primary energy sources with fast-spectrum and transmutation (burner)
reactors. A closed fuel cycle and waste transmutation resolve the strategic
issues associated with nuclear power. Innovative reactor designs utilize
spallation of heavy metals in subcritical accelerator driven systems or
molten-salt reactors. Importation and reconstruction of technical expertise
already lost and aversion of further erosion are preconditions to any
successful energy strategy. Research opportunities to perfect innovative
nuclear, coal, and renewable energy technologies should be pursued.
