We’re seeing signals from international organizations, the financial community, and the government that point to nuclear energy as a “green” investment. Earlier this month the European Union (EU) decided to include investments in nuclear energy in the EU's Sustainable Finance Taxonomy, and just last week Ontario Power Generation (OPG) updated its green bond framework to include nuclear energy.
What needs to happen for nuclear energy to be universally valued in sustainable investing? Let’s ask the expert, Monica Trauzzi, who is NEI’s Senior Director of External Communications & Climate Finance Strategy and Engagement.
Why is nuclear energy a necessary investment in our clean energy future?
Decarbonizing our economy is a huge task, and when we think about all of the credible ways of getting there, nuclear has to be a part of any plan that is going to work. When we think about the relationship between the public and private sectors, the two really need to come together and work together in order to get to that decarbonized place—and that includes nuclear.
How is the financial community engaging with nuclear energy?
There’s so much interest from across the financial community. I’m in regular contact with the people who are making decisions on energy investments, and they’re all seeking to be better educated on nuclear energy.
I’ve also been really excited to see nuclear really go mainstream when it comes to financial conferences—things like the financial times energy conference. We’ve seen a lot of energy behind including nuclear in those discussions and I think that just demonstrates how important nuclear is to solving climate change.
What signals do investors need to see to catalyze the funding needed for next-generation nuclear reactors?
We know that ESG screens are used to sort of weed out good versus bad investments, and so it’s really important that nuclear is valued for its not only carbon-free attributes, but also the social attributes and the job-creating attributes that it brings. It really meets the E, S, and G of ESG. It’s important that it’s recognized for those things.
So what we’d like to see is nuclear really be part of those screens in a positive way and that the screens come in line with current thinking. It's also important to note that nuclear meets the Sustainable Development Goals set out by the United Nations, and I know that those are an important marker for the financial community as they are looking at energy investments.
How does the government play into this space given the proposed rule we saw earlier this year from the SEC?
The government has an important role to play in moving the market to a clean, carbon-free place. In many cases, the private sector is waiting for signals from the federal government on how to act. The reverse is also true too though, we see the private sector often acting ahead of the government and really leading the way on climate positive investments. Truly public private partnerships are likely what will drive us to the place where we need to go in order to solve climate change.
Recently the SEC proposed a rule on climate disclosures. It’s an important step in getting the private sector to really value and focus on climate positive decisions.
