In early September, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced that it awarded nearly $30 million in funding to support nuclear fusion technologies....more
Draft legislation American Nuclear Infrastructure Act of 2020 set to provide further support for advanced reactors -
On July 29th, Senator Barrasso (R-WY) introduced a draft bill, the American Nuclear Infrastructure Act of...more
8/6/2020
/ Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) ,
Foreign Investment ,
Infrastructure ,
Legislative Agendas ,
NASA ,
Nuclear Power ,
Nuclear Regulatory Commission ,
Outer Space
On July 23, 2020, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DCF) announced its intention to open the door to funding opportunities for nuclear projects abroad....more
Advanced nuclear reactors promising smaller, simpler, and safer nuclear energy are moving closer and closer to commercial reality. As we recently blogged, Oklo Inc., a California-based company, recently submitted the...more
The United States has been struggling to compete with its peers in securing nuclear power plant construction projects around the world. One of the factors impacting U.S. competitiveness is that many foreign countries such as...more
Tuesday, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) published its proposed rule to revise its Emergency Preparedness (EP) requirements for small modular reactors (SMRs) and other new technologies (ONT, such as advanced...more
Over the past month, there have been major developments related to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) advanced reactor licensing reform and nuclear-related export controls. ...more
Even in these extremely challenging times, advanced reactor innovators are working hard to make the next generation of clean, safe nuclear reactors a reality. ...more
The Energy Impact Center (EIC), which brought us the well-known Titans of Nuclear podcast series, has recently launched “OPEN100,” which provides important open-source information intended to streamline the power plant design...more
Since 2016, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has been developing a strategy to review future non-light water reactor (non-LWR) technologies. That year, the NRC published the NRC Vision and Strategy:...more
Fusion, the process that powers the Sun, has long been seen as the “holy grail” of energy production. In contrast with fission, which splits apart atoms in a nuclear reactor, fusion literally fuses hydrogen atoms together,...more
After over a year of anticipation, in January the U.S. Treasury Department released its final regulations that revise the jurisdiction and rules for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ (CFIUS), following...more
2/6/2020
/ CFIUS ,
Covered Transactions ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Export Controls ,
Filing Requirements ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Investment ,
Jurisdiction ,
National Security ,
NDAA ,
New Rules ,
Non-Controlling Interests ,
Nuclear Power ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Technology
The Council on Environmental Quality is proposing major changes to its regulations concerning the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), that if implemented could have impacts on advanced reactor licensing. ...more
1/17/2020
/ CEQ ,
Comment Period ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Assessments ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Review ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
Nuclear Power ,
Nuclear Regulatory Commission ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration
The year 2019 comes to an end with some positive news on the advanced reactor licensing front, including the upcoming issuance of a US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Early Site Permit, grant of a US Department of Energy...more
In time for the Thanksgiving long weekend, we want to draw your attention to a number of interesting reports on advanced reactor developments that have come out over the past couple months...more
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) held two public meetings on November 15th and 20th to solicit feedback as to whether to compile a Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) for the construction and operation of...more
11/25/2019
/ Comment Period ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
Nuclear Power ,
Nuclear Regulatory Commission ,
Power Plants ,
Public Meetings ,
Regulatory Agenda
The Nuclear Innovation Alliance (NIA) late last week published two papers on recommendations for addressing regulatory challenges related to advanced reactor licensing...more
On Wednesday Nuclear Innovation Alliance (NIA) hosted a meeting on the Hill about how to enhance the development of nuclear energy by finding its “SpaceX” moment. The meeting relates to NIA’s new publication, In Seach of a...more
9/13/2019
/ Aerospace ,
Climate Change ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Projects ,
Funding ,
NASA ,
National Security ,
Nuclear Power ,
Outer Space ,
Pay-for-Performance ,
SpaceX
On Tuesday, the Senate Energy and Natural Resource Committee passed a slew of energy related-legislation, including the Nuclear Energy Leadership Act (NELA), on a largely bipartisan basis. NELA supports the development and...more
On June 18, 2019, U.S. Representatives Elaine Luria (D-VA) and Denver Riggleman (R-VA), along with Reps. Rob Wittman (R-VA) and Conor Lamb (D-PA), introduced in the House the Nuclear Energy Leadership Act (H.R. 3306), an...more
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in early May issued a notice seeking comments on a new draft regulatory guide impacting advanced reactor licensing. ...more
5/15/2019
/ Administrative Review ,
Comment Period ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
License Applications ,
New Guidance ,
Nuclear Power ,
Nuclear Regulatory Commission ,
Power Plants ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight
April has seen significant milestones in licensing of advanced reactors. We take a closer look at these developments, in particular the first submission of an advanced reactor license application in Canada....more
The reintroduction of Nuclear Energy Leadership Act (NELA) caps off a week of activities focused on innovation, and follows on advancement of key U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) guidance on advanced reactor...more
3/29/2019
/ Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Projects ,
Innovation ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Licensing Rules ,
Nuclear Power ,
Power Plants ,
Power Purchase Agreements ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Research and Development
The start of 2019 has seen significant progress towards production and licensing of high-assay low-enriched uranium (“HALEU”) fuel. If this momentum keeps up, it has the ability to check off what we have long-discussed to be...more
Activity across the government has put advanced nuclear reactors center stage early this year. With the signing of the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act, hearings on Capitol Hill, and the release of a...more