Laying the Foundation for New and Advanced Nuclear Reactors in the United States

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Recent years have brought a renewed focus on the potential for nuclear energy to help meet the United States' growing demands for abundant, reliable, low-carbon energy. Trends such as the increased electrification of transportation and industrial processes, along with the rapid expansion of data centers over the past decade, have accelerated and amplified these demands. Advances in nuclear energy technologies, along with the recent completion of Plant Vogtle - the largest nuclear power plant in the United States comprised of four reactor units - are opening new opportunities to build next-generation nuclear reactors and sparking interest and dialogue among utilities, investors, policymakers, and communities. However, significant barriers to nuclear power deployment include technical challenges, regulatory hurdles, and investment risks that complicate decision-making timelines.

To explore pathways for new nuclear power development in the United States, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine hosted the workshop Pathways for New Nuclear Development on January 29-30, 2025 in Washington, DC. Building on recommendations from the National Academies' report Laying the Foundation for New and Advanced Nuclear Reactors in the United States, the event facilitated in-depth discussions among policymakers, regulators, community leaders, and technical experts from industry, national laboratories, and academia. Participants examined the challenges of deploying more nuclear power and discussed potential opportunities to overcome some of those challenges, including strategies to facilitate decision making, public engagement, workforce development, financing, regulatory improvement, and construction. Attendees shared their experiences and perspectives regarding the real and perceived risks of new nuclear projects and projected timelines, the opportunities of co-locating nuclear plants with other facilities or in non-traditional locations, and the role different reactor designs could play in meeting growing electricity demand. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussion of the workshop.

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100 pages · 6 x 9 · paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-99329-6
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-99330-X
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17226/29142

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National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Pathways for New Nuclear Development: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

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The world confronts an existential challenge in responding to climate change, resulting in an urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from all sectors of the economy. What will it take for new and advanced nuclear reactors to play a role in decarbonization? Nuclear power provides a significant portion of the worlds low-carbon electricity, and advanced nuclear technologies have the potential to be smaller, safer, less expensive to build, and better integrated with the modern grid. However, if the United States wants advanced nuclear reactors to play a role in its plans for decarbonization, there are many key challenges that must be overcome at the technical, economic, and regulatory levels.

Laying the Foundation for New and Advanced Nuclear Reactors in the United States discusses how the United States could support the successful commercialization of advanced nuclear reactors with a set of near-term policies and practices. The recommendations of this report address the need to close technology research gaps, explore new business use cases, improve project management and construction, update regulations and security requirements, prioritize community engagement, strengthen the skilled workforce, and develop competitive financing options.

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252 pages · 8.5 x 11 · paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-69077-3
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-69078-1
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17226/26630

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National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2023. Laying the Foundation for New and Advanced Nuclear Reactors in the United States. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

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Nuclear reactors can provide low-carbon energy, and advanced nuclear technologies could play an important role in moving the United States toward a zero-carbon future. Next-generation nuclear reactors have the potential to be smaller, safer, less expensive to build, and better integrated with the modern grid. However, the technical, economic, and regulatory outlook for these technologies remains uncertain.

The Committee on Laying the Foundation for New and Advanced Nuclear Reactors in the United States was convened by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to identify opportunities and barriers to the commercialization of new and advanced nuclear reactor technologies in the United States over the next 30 years as part of a decarbonization strategy. To support its information gathering, the committee convened a workshop on September 1-3, 2021, titled Understanding the Societal Challenges Facing Nuclear Power. Speakers and participants from industry, government, and academia discussed the nature and extent of the societal challenges facing nuclear energy as well as lessons from past experiences in the nuclear industry, from analogous industries, and from the social sciences. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussion of the workshop.

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76 pages · 6 x 9 ·
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-68985-6
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17226/26606

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National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Understanding the Societal Challenges Facing Nuclear Power: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

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