The field of nuclear decommissioning is in the midst of a major transformation, led by innovations in the United States. Since 1964, 36 nuclear reactors have shut down, 21 reactors are currently undergoing decommissioning,...more
The field of nuclear decommissioning is in the midst of a major transformation, led by innovations in the United States. Since 1964, 36 nuclear reactors have shut down, 21 reactors are currently undergoing decommissioning,...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
The latter half of May has seen regulatory initiatives benefiting advanced reactors promoted across the government. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) affirmed new guidance on non-light water reactor (non-LWR)...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
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
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
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
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
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
Happy New Year! As we start off 2019, we want to motive the nuclear community by sharing a few legal updates and popular reports that have come out around the end of the last year....more
Earlier this month, a leading group of Canadian power companies and government entities (although not the nuclear regulator) issued a “Canadian SMR Roadmap,” an 89 page plan for Canada to become a leader in small modular and...more
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently released a staff paper-SECY-18-0096-seeking Commission approval of a new proposed methodology for establishing “functional containment” performance criteria for non-light...more
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) completed “the first and most intensive phase of review for” NuScale’s Design Certification Application for its small modular reactor. ...more
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) this week announced the award of approximately $60 million to 13 advanced reactor projects—the first under the funding opportunity announcement (FOA) “U.S. Industry Opportunities for...more
On April 4, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued Regulatory Guide 1.232, Guidance for Developing Principal Design Criteria for Non-Light Water Reactors. ...more
The House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Energy held a hearing February 6, 2018 to discuss the challenges facing America’s nuclear infrastructure, including advanced reactor development. ...more
2/8/2018
/ Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Federal Funding ,
National Security ,
Nuclear Power ,
Political Committees ,
Power Plants ,
Regulatory Oversight