If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that the future has some things in store for us that we can’t foresee.
This year will forever be known for COVID-19, which has taken a tragic toll on the world. As we continue to push through the pandemic, the nuclear industry—like all of us—has been adapting to the new reality, taking new safety precautions, completing two refueling outage seasons, and helping with relief efforts.
2020 has also brought significant milestones for the next generation of nuclear reactors with the Natrium and Xe-100 designs receiving major funding from the U.S. Department of Energy, NuScale Power’s small modular reactor (SMR) becoming the first design of its kind to be approved by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff, and the Utah Association of Municipal Power Systems securing a significant cost-share award from DOE for its SMR project.
While we can’t predict what will happen in 2021, we know that in order to reach our climate goals, we will need to continue investing in the latest energy innovations, while building on the consensus that all carbon-free technologies will be necessary. Here’s how nuclear energy will figure into our urgent need to reduce emissions in the coming year.
Nuclear Will Provide Common Ground in Climate Policy During the Biden Administration
The new administration is sure to bring change to Washington. President-Elect Biden has signaled that climate change policy will be one of his major priorities and plans to rejoin the Paris Agreement on day one. As part of his commitment to reaching an emissions-free grid by 2035 and net-zero emissions from all energy use by 2050, he has stated that all carbon-free sources of energy should be on the table, including nuclear energy.
Climate policy is often contentious, especially in these deeply polarized times; however, nuclear has enjoyed enduring bipartisan support both because of how much carbon-free energy our current fleet produces as well as the large numbers of well-paying jobs it creates and the recent momentum in technological innovation with advanced reactors.
Recently, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee passed the American Nuclear Infrastructure Act—legislation that would incentivize the deployment of advanced reactors, in addition to supporting plants at risk of premature closure due to market conditions—with Republican and Democratic support. Over the summer, the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis and the Senate Democrats’ Special Committee on the Climate Crisis both recognized nuclear energy as part of a climate solution that leverages all carbon-free technologies.
Nuclear energy can still be divisive among some environmentalists and climate activists, but the urgency of reducing carbon emissions is causing many to reconsider.
“[I]t makes no sense to take existing nuclear off the table at the precise moment in geological history that we need to be rapidly reducing emissions from our energy system,” Julian Brave NoiseCat, vice president of policy and strategy at Data for Progress, told Axios.
As Biden works to protect the climate in what could be a divided political landscape, finding something to agree on will be imperative. With a track record of support from both sides of the aisle, nuclear energy and advanced reactors will be that common ground.
New Reactors Will Keep Reaching New Milestones
The growing momentum of nuclear innovation has been one of the highlights of 2020. With more reactor concepts hitting important milestones on the path to commercialization, advanced reactors are increasingly being viewed as essential to decarbonization efforts.
Many utilities including Duke Energy Corp., Xcel Energy Inc., Dominion Energy and Ontario Power Generation Inc. have set ambitious carbon-reduction goals and consider nuclear energy key to reaching a low-carbon future. These companies are taking steps to both keep their existing reactors for the long-term and ensure next-generation nuclear energy is available to complement wind and solar.
That’s great news for advanced reactor developers like TerraPower LLC and GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, X-energy LLC, NuScale Power LLC, Oklo Inc., Kairos Power LLC, Terrestrial Energy Inc., Holtec International and more. An emerging market signals confidence in designs that are moving forward with increasing speed.
But without continued funding—both private and public—this momentum could slow. Congress must increase funding to DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy and continue to support programs like the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, the Advanced SMR program, the Versatile Test Reactor, and other research and development efforts.
America’s Reactors Will Remain Invaluable to Reaching Climate Goals
Our nuclear plants remain the largest source of clean energy in the U.S. and as utilities plan for the future, they’re counting on the current fleet of reactors to keep powering our way of life without carbon emissions. Several plants have already been granted second license renewal (SLR) to operate an additional 20 years and more than half of the current fleet have applied or are expected to apply for SLR by 2035 as utilities plan on their contributions to meet carbon goals.
And in 2021, Vogtle 3 will begin operations and will be followed by Vogtle 4 in 2022. These state-of-the-art reactors will become the first new nuclear reactors built in the U.S. in more than 30 years and power more than half a million homes and businesses in Georgia.
However, even as watershed moments take place, these carbon-free champions are at risk of premature closure in many places, right when they are needed most to reduce carbon emissions.
In Illinois, four Exelon nuclear plants face premature closure because of markets that don’t properly value carbon-free energy—with two of those plants, Byron and Dresden, slated for closure in 2021. The state is also, along with New Jersey and Maryland, engaged with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on how to handle market rules that are limiting carbon-free energy and threatening other nuclear plants.
It’s up to policymakers to ensure policies value all clean energy sources that will be needed to address climate issues, including nuclear.
2021 Will Be Pivotal for Continued Progress in Carbon-Free Energy
Despite the uncertainty of this year, 2020 brought an increased recognition of the urgent need to reduce carbon emissions.
The significant shifts we’ve seen in support for nuclear energy indicate that there’s no longer a debate—nuclear is essential to a carbon-free future. Nuclear energy will provide common ground in the quest for a climate solution, advanced nuclear will continue to speed towards deployment and operating reactors will remain steadfast champions of carbon-free energy.
A world without carbon emissions may seem far off or unattainable, but 2021 offers us an opportunity to take broad strides towards that future and we must seize it.
