[charli (OP)]

Listener Fay was wondering:

"How far we are from having a working Thorium Reactor? As it seems to me that if they start building them, it will solve the problem of how to power the National Grid when there is no sunshine or wind."

[alancalverd]

Wikipedia reports 

Currently two reactors are under construction in the Gobi desert, with completion expected in 2020. China expects to put thorium reactors into commercial use by 2030.

There being  vast quantities of thorium sand in the world (particularly in India), and the fission products being somewhat less obnoxious than those of uranium 235, it's an excellent proposition, but the technology is a bit more complicated and expensive than a uranium reactor, hence the slow progress to date.

[evan_au]

There have been prototype Thorium reactors built.
See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorium-based_nuclear_power#Background_and_brief_history

But in the cold-war era (and with some nations today), the focus has been on Uranium reactors as they can be (mis)used to produce nuclear weapons.

[Petrochemicals]

Wikipedia reports 

Currently two reactors are under construction in the Gobi desert, with completion expected in 2020. China expects to put thorium reactors into commercial use by 2030.

There being  vast quantities of thorium sand in the world (particularly in India), and the fission products being somewhat less obnoxious than those of uranium 235, it's an excellent proposition, but the technology is a bit more complicated and expensive than a uranium reactor, hence the slow progress to date.

Yet they developed the h bomb, salted  bomb, neutron bomb as well as developing numerous chain reaction pathways from various substances in an array  of different configurations in such a small amount of time. It's just a shame the thorium reactor doesn't produce anying useful for nuclear weapons.

[alancalverd]

Politicians like bombs. Rational humans like electricity.