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Fusion holds the potential to revolutionize energy generation around the globe, and innovators in the private sector have been working hard to make this potential a reality.  Public-private partnerships to develop and deploy this critical technology will be instrumental to its long-term success.  To this end, the US Department of Energy (DOE) is exploring cost-sharing…

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 (DOE) Site Use Permit, and updates on the regulatory reform front:

  • Clinch River Early Site Permit: The

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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:

  • Most recently, the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) issued a thoughtful white paper on regulatory and licensing issues for micro-reactors, in advance of the

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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 SpaceX for Nuclear Energy.  The talk was led by three experts: Dr. Matt Bowen, formerly Associate…

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 deployment of advanced nuclear reactors and was introduced to the Senate by a bipartisan group on March 27, 2019.

NELA would establish a…

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 identical companion bill to the Nuclear Energy Leadership Act (S. 903) (“NELA”), which was introduced in the Senate on March…

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 licensing.

We covered NELA when it was first introduced in 2018, focusing on its important bipartisan contributions to reestablishing global leadership in nuclear…

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 a key prerequisite to commercial debut of advanced reactors.

As to production of HALEU, two significant events occurred around…

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.

  • Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act (S.512, NEIMA):  On December 21, Congress adopted NEIMA, legislation that addresses NRC licensing

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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 water reactors (non-LWRs).  This methodology would step away from deterministic containment design parameters and embrace a concept of “‘functional containment’ as a barrier, or a set of…