A
nuclear power plant is a
thermal power station in which the heat source is a
nuclear reactor. As is typical in all conventional thermal power stations the heat is used to generate steam which drives a
steam turbine connected to an
electric generator which produces
electricity. , the
IAEA report there are 435 nuclear power reactors in operation operating in 31 countries. Nuclear power plants are usually considered to be
base load stations, since fuel is a small part of the cost of production.