Not many issues have bridged the left-right political divide in Washington, D.C., the way that advanced nuclear technology has. This bipartisan congressional support in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives will help advanced reactors—and the clean energy future they promise—become a reality.
Last week, Sens. Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) introduced the Nuclear Energy Renewal Act (NERA), that supports research and development (R&D) to speed the advent of advanced reactors and help preserve U.S. existing nuclear power plants. This bill joins several pieces of legislation aimed at boosting next-generation nuclear technology:
- The Nuclear Energy Leadership Act (NELA), introduced in both the House and Senate earlier this year, aims to spur development of advanced reactors with a focus on demonstration and commercialization of the new designs. The Senate version of the bill directs the U.S. Department of Energy to create a strategic vision for developing next-generation nuclear and authorizes demonstration of two designs by 2025 and two to five additional designs by 2035. In addition, NELA addresses the current lack of supply of the specialized fuel necessary for many advanced reactor designs.
Private-public partnerships are essential to the development and deployment of advanced technologies, and demonstrating advanced reactors will spur their deployment by helping overcome first-of-a-kind challenges.
- The Nuclear Energy Innovation Capabilities Act (NEICA), passed in September 2018, aims to eliminate some of the barriers to advanced nuclear and establish some of the infrastructure to get there, including the versatile test reactor (VTR), which will test fuels and materials used in next-generation plants. DOE is looking into building the VTR at the Idaho or Oak Ridge national laboratories—and could do so as early as 2026.
- The Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act (NEIMA), approved in January, aims to improve the regulatory structure for advanced reactors, including certifying and licensing new reactor designs. NEIMA also reforms the fee structure for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
NERA, NELA, NEICA, NEIMA. If the names sound alike, it may be intentional: They’re all focused on nuclear energy and signal that, with bipartisan support, Congress has set the agenda to make this technology a priority.
Here’s a quick chart to tell them apart:
| Legislation | Principal Aims | Status |
|---|---|---|
| NEICA | R&D, Infrastructure | Passed (September 2018) |
| NEIMA | Regulatory improvements | Passed (January 2019) |
| NELA | Demonstration, Commercialization | Passed Senate committee |
| NERA | R&D, Preserves existing nuclear plants | Introduced (July 2019) |
The next generation of reactors will protect the climate with carbon-free energy and provide applications with additional social benefits—like assisting in hydrogen production for electric vehicles or helping turn seawater into drinking water.
Noting these benefits, policymakers are stepping up.
With bipartisan support, these measures create a path forward for the eventual deployment of advanced reactors—a critical step in achieving our clean energy future.
