Nuclear

While global nuclear power capacity has remained at a consistent level over the past decade, newly released data from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) suggests that more than two-thirds of the world’s nuclear reactors are more than 30 years old, and nearly a third have been in operation for 40 years. According to the […]

State-run China Energy News reported that officials on August 19 approved construction of 11 nuclear reactors across the country, part of a wave of new reactors that could see China surpass both the U.S. and France in terms of operating reactors by the end of the decade. CGN Power Co., a subsidiary of China’s state-owned […]

A leading nuclear science and technology group in Canada, along with the investment arm of one of the country’s top banks, said they together would invest about CA$20 million ($14.6 million) to support development of commercial fusion energy. Canadian Nuclear Laboratories and BDC Capital, part of the Business Development Bank of Canada, on August 8 […]

This week marks the second anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a critical milestone for the section 45Q tax credit, the foundational policy for the deployment of carbon management technologies, which was further enhanced in the IRA. The 45Q tax credit provides a credit on a per-ton basis for carbon that is captured from […]

India’s Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) will allow the country’s flagship 500-MWe/1,250-MWth prototype fast-breeder reactor (PFBR) in Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu, to approach criticality. The nuclear energy safety watchdog on July 30 granted state-owned Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Ltd. (BHAVINI) permission to embark on the final stage of core loading following assessments, extensive safety reviews, and plant […]

Browns Ferry Unit 1, the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA’s) first nuclear reactor, turned 50 on Aug. 1, 2024, marking a significant milestone in the iconic plant’s storied history. To commemorate this occasion, POWER is republishing an article, written by Kennedy Maize in 2007, that provides an in-depth look at the history of the 3,954-MW Browns […]

Emerging from a historic election that stripped the African National Congress (ANC) party of its majority, South Africa’s new government has indicated it will accelerate the transition to renewable power to

Malaysia Slightly Moves Up Timeframe for Coal Phaseout. Malaysia will halve its coal use by 2035 and phase out coal generation by 2044, slightly earlier than previously anticipated by the country’s National

The U.S. Supreme Court recently overturned the longstanding Chevron doctrine, a foundation of administrative law for 40 years, when it ruled on Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo . The impacts on a wide

Construction of Hermes, Kairos Power’s 35-MWth iterative non-power demonstration molten salt nuclear reactor, has officially kicked off in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The effort marks another major step for the burgeoning advanced nuclear industry, which celebrated the groundbreaking of TerraPower’s Kemmerer 1, a pioneering sodium-cooled fast reactor demonstration, in June. Site work and excavation for the Hermes […]

Updated data from the China Nuclear Energy Association (CNEA) shows the country has 55 nuclear reactors in operation, ranking third globally behind the U.S. and France. The CNEA said China at present has a world-leading 26 nuclear power units under construction, including Unit 5 of the Ningde Nuclear Power Plant in Fujian Province, where the […]

This month, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and the Commonwealth’s largest utility, Dominion Energy, announced a request for proposal (RFP) for the development and construction of an advanced nuclear small modular reactor (SMR), and the governor signed Senate Bill 454 designed to facilitate the research, design, construction, and deployment of what will be America’s first commercial […]

We serve as elected utility regulators in Georgia and Arizona. Our states are thriving. Economic opportunities abound. And we need more energy. Both of our states have nuclear reactors, and there is public support to build more of them—if the right deal can be made. But it is not just Georgia and Arizona. Many states […]

A Kentucky-based group has announced plans to build a 6-GW fleet of nuclear power stations in the U.S., looking to take advantage of bipartisan support for nuclear technology and the need to build more baseload, zero-carbon sources of energy. The Nuclear Company, headquartered in Lexington, said its business model would lean on “proven, licensed technology […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has wrapped up its final safety evaluation for Kairos Power’s Hermes 2 “low power” advanced test facility, comprising two 35-MWth test molten salt reactors—similar to the Hermes 1 “non-power” demonstration reactor for which the regulatory body issued a construction permit in December 2023.  The NRC’s action, announced on July 22, […]

Engineering giant Burns & McDonnell has entered into an agreement with nuclear technology specialist BWXT Technologies to advance the design and development of the BWXT Advanced Nuclear Reactor (BANR). The microreactor project is an integral part of a contract with the Wyoming Energy Authority (WEA), which is assessing the viability of deploying small-scale nuclear reactors […]

Officials in India said that country’s energy transition plan will focus on developing small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs), pumped energy storage projects, and more efficient coal-fired power plants. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, presenting the government’s 2024-2025 budget, noted the latest financial allocations outline a shift in priorities for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Sitharaman on July […]

Framatome and Slovak utility Slovenské elektrárne on July 23 announced the companies have signed a major contract for the long-term supply of nuclear fuel to the Bohunice and Mochovce VVER reactors from 2027. This follows on from the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two companies in May 2023. “This contract marks a new milestone […]

South African state-owned utility Eskom has garnered the National Nuclear Regulator’s (NNR’s) approval to continue operating Unit 1 of the 1,860-MW Koeberg Nuclear Power Station for another 20 years, until July 21, 2044. The nuclear regulator’s approval effectively extends the lifetime of the 930-MW unit to 60 years. The unit’s current 40-year license was set […]

A global professional services and project management company headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, announced it has been chose to develop the pre-concept design for a nuclear fusion pilot plant (FPP). The pilot, announced by Canada-based Canada-based AtkinsRéalis on July 10 as part of Type One Energy’s FusionDirect program, will be a commercial-scale FPP. It will use […]

On Friday, May 31, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Jennifer Granholm flew to Georgia to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Plant Vogtle, the first set of nuclear reactors built in the U.S. in nearly 30 years, where she called for another 198 large-scale reactors to follow. There is a lot I don’t understand in […]

Nuclear power has consistently provided about 19% to 20% of total annual U.S. electricity generation since 1990. It provides significant amounts of electricity in many other countries as well. According to data from The World Nuclear Industry Status Report (WNISR), a total of 414 reactors were operating in 32 countries, as of July 1, 2024. […]

In a strategic move to jumpstart domestic uranium enrichment capacity in the U.S., the Department of Energy (DOE) has launched a request for proposals (RFP) to buy low-enriched uranium (LEU) from domestic suppliers. The RFP will seek LEU through procurement contracts for indefinite quantity and indefinite delivery (IDIQ). It could result in awards of “two […]

Adding new reactors to the U.S.’s fleet of nuclear power plants doesn’t happen every day. In fact, prior to the addition of Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4, it hadn’t been done from scratch in decades

Economics Could Bring Early Closure for Slovenia Coal-Fired Plant. Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob in May said the Termoelektrana Šoštanj (TEŠ) facility, the country’s only remaining coal-fired

After a decades-long slowdown marked by fits and starts, the U.S. is once again building and innovating in nuclear power. In April, the second of two new nuclear units went into service at Georgia Power’s

Southern Nuclear, a subsidiary of Southern Company and operator of more than 8.2 GW of nuclear power capacity, said it has completed the installation of lead test assemblies with additively manufactured debris-filtering bottom nozzles (AMBN) at Alabama Power’s Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant. The AMBN assemblies are a new technology manufactured by Westinghouse Electric Co. […]

The U.S. Senate has passed the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy (ADVANCE) Act, sweeping legislation that seeks to promote U.S. nuclear leadership, accelerate advanced nuclear technology development while preserving existing nuclear generation, bolster national security measures, and enhance regulatory efficiency to support new nuclear deployment. The Senate passed the bill on […]

Dr. David Gattie, a University of Georgia engineering professor, recently tweeted, “Nuclear is critical, but the priority must be U.S. national security and ensuring America’s competitive advantage over China and Russia in nuclear science, engineering and technology—not just about climate change.” As I sit in Warsaw, Poland, just a train ride to the Ukrainian border, […]

Bill Gates’ nuclear innovation firm TerraPower has broken ground on the non-nuclear portion of Kemmerer Unit 1, a 345-MW Natrium sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) power plant. The groundbreaking on June 10 makes the federal demonstration project the first advanced nuclear reactor project to move from design into construction in the Western Hemisphere, the company noted. […]