Report spotlights energy sector’s growing nuclear investmentAs part of a broader series on the future of global energy markets, S&P Global has released a report on examining the growing interest in nuclear power as the solution to many of the problems the energy sector faces.To read the full details and conclusions of the report, click here.Go to Article
Nuclear Engineering Student Delegation applications openApplications for the 2025 Nuclear Engineering Student Delegation (NESD) are now open. Student delegates have a unique opportunity to directly engage with policymakers in Washington, D.C., educating them on and advocating for nuclear energy initiatives of critical importance to the United States.Go to Article
IAEA digital library adds information platformThe International Atomic Energy Agency’s International Nuclear Information System (INIS) has increased its user friendliness and knowledge expanse by incorporating Invenio, an open-source platform developed by the European Organization for Nuclear Research.Go to Article
“The time is now” to advance U.S. nuclear—Part 1The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is gearing up to tackle an influx of licensing requests and oversight of advanced nuclear reactor technology, especially small modular reactors.Go to Article
TerraPower roundup: Progress for Natrium projectTerraPower has continued to make aggressive progress in several areas for its Natrium Reactor Demonstration Project since the beginning of the year. Natrium is an advanced 345-MWe reactor that has liquid sodium as a coolant, improved fuel utilization, enhanced safety features, and an integrated energy storage system, allowing for a brief power output boost to 500 MWe if needed for grid resiliency. The company broke ground for its first Natrium plant in 2024 near a retiring coal facility in Kemmerer, Wyo.Go to Article
“Atoms for Appalachia” report outlines growth opportunitiesA new report from the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center follows up on its 2024 workshops with recommendations for deploying advanced nuclear energy in the Appalachian area to spur economic development.Go to Article
SMR prospects in the developing worldSmall modular reactors, as the name implies, are meant to be small, each one generating less than 300 megawatts of electricity. They are modular in the sense that the units belonging to the same design look alike, and their parts can be manufactured in factories at various locations and then shipped to a central location for assembly.Go to Article
In an international industry, regulators cross the border tooSince nuclear physics works the same in Ontario as it does in Tennessee, the industry has been trying to create a reactor that can be deployed on both sides of the border. Now, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission have decided that some of their rulings can cross the border too. Go to Article
El Salvador: Looking to nuclearIn 2022, El Salvador’s leadership decided to expand its modest, mostly hydro- and geothermal-based electricity system, which is supported by expensive imported natural gas and diesel generation. They chose to use advanced nuclear reactors, preferably fueled by thorium-based fuels, to power their civilian efforts. The choice of thorium was made to inform the world that the reactor program was for civilian purposes only, and so they chose a fuel that was plentiful, easy to source and work with, and not a proliferation risk.Go to Article
Nuclear materials testing project brings U.S. and U.K. expertise togetherAs nations look to nuclear energy as a source of carbon-free electricity and heat, researchers and industry are developing a new generation of nuclear reactors to fill the need.These advanced nuclear reactors will work in concert with renewables to provide safe, efficient, and economical Power for a wider range of applications than the large electricity-generating machines that currently provide roughly 25 percent of the world’s carbon-free power. But before large-scale deployment of advanced reactors, researchers need to understand and test the safety and performance of the technologies—especially the coolants and materials—that make them possible. Now, the United States and the United Kingdom have teamed up to test hundreds of advanced nuclear materials. Go to Article