PM could imagine uranium export industry

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull doubts Australians will ever get their power from a nuclear power station but can imagine a uranium export industry.

The prime minister says he's sceptical about Australia having nuclear power stations but with the nation's abundance of uranium, an export and waste storage sector is conceivable.

"That is a business that you could well imagine here," he told Adelaide's FIVEAA radio, while congratulating South Australian Premier Jay Weatherall for launching a royal commission into a possible nuclear industry for the state.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten agreed nuclear power stations in Australia were unlikely.

"The cost of setting up a nuclear industry from scratch is expensive," he told reporters in Sydney on Wednesday.

However, the outcome of the royal commission into a uranium sector would be "interesting" and could put some evidence on the table, he said.