- Bill would help accelerate development, deployment of advanced reactors
- Bipartisan group of senators commends legislation at hearing on Capitol Hill
- NEI urges Congress to pass legislation promptly without delay
This week, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee discussed a bipartisan bill designed to help America recapture its lead in nuclear energy technology in the face of increasing global competition. At a packed hearing on Capitol Hill, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) praised the Nuclear Energy Leadership Act.
“I have long been concerned that here in this country we are ceding our place as a global leader in nuclear power. We’ve got competitors with China, with Russia who are moving forward with advanced nuclear technologies and we’ve been slow to come together around any form of a coherent strategy,” Murkowski said.
“In order to compete, we need the Department of Energy to partner with our industry, we need to change policies to better focus our efforts … As we focus on energy security, on national security, it’s imperative that we be moving forward on the nuclear front as well. I’m pleased that this bill is before the committee.”
U.S. Department of Energy Under Secretary Mark Menezes also shared his thoughts on the bill in his testimony.
“The Nuclear Energy Leadership Act would enhance nuclear energy innovation, specifically related to advanced nuclear reactor technologies by providing goals for DOE to further accelerate the development of advanced reactor technologies, developing a program for making available the fuel required by these advanced reactors, and supporting the development of the high-skilled workforce needed to develop, regulate, and safeguard advanced reactors,” Menezes said.
“The Department recognizes that advanced reactors face challenges to ultimately achieving commercialization. In addition to early-stage research and development the Administration supports prioritized investments in nuclear energy research infrastructure to enable private sector innovation.”
The bill (S 3422)—introduced by Sens. Murkowski and Cory Booker (D-N.J.), along with Sens. James Risch (R-Idaho), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.)—would kick-start a long-term collaborative effort between the federal government and the nuclear industry to reestablish America’s global leadership in commercial nuclear technology.
Among other objectives, the legislation would:
- Extend the maximum length of federal power purchase agreements from 10 to 40 years. This is important for the nuclear industry, because initial capital costs for reactors are paid for over a period beyond 10 years, which means 10-year agreements are not sufficient.
- Call for the federal government to be an early adopter of new technologies that increase electric reliability and resilience.
- Direct DOE to construct a fast neutron-capable research facility to test advanced reactor components and materials and to accelerate innovation.
- Establish a program to provide a minimum amount of high-assay low-enriched uranium, which is required by many advanced reactor concepts but which at present isn’t commercially available in the U.S.
With Congress in its lame-duck session, the legislation will likely not see action this year but is in strong position to be considered in the next Congress. NEI said it is important for Congress to act to secure America’s leadership in nuclear energy.
“The nuclear industry supports this legislation and hopes that Congress will act swiftly when they return in January to pass this bipartisan measure into law,” NEI President and Chief Executive Officer Maria Korsnick said.
“Next generation nuclear technology is being aggressively pursued globally, and in order for the American nuclear industry to compete with state-owned or state-sponsored developers in rival nations—especially China and Russia—we must have significant collaboration between the federal government, our national labs and private industry to accelerate innovation. There is no time to waste.”
[Image credit: Thirdway/Gensler]
