Newsroom Archive

After a vote-a-rama in the Senate and passage in the House, President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. It’s not often that Congress returns to Washington during August district work periods to pass legislation—unless it’s important. In fact, President Biden called the legislation "the biggest step forward on climate ever.” And at the center of this big step to address climate change is support for carbon-free nuclear energy.

Dow Chemical, one of the largest chemical producers in the world, plans to drive down its carbon emissions through the deployment of X-energy’s small modular reactor (SMR) design. Dow is the first manufacturer to announce the intention to develop SMR technology options. Transportation and industry comprise over half of emissions in the U.S., which is double that of the electricity grid. The world won’t be able to achieve deep decarbonization without committing to innovative solutions for these sectors—which is exactly what Dow is doing.

In a historic vote, the House passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), including the vital provisions for clean energy sources like nuclear. The bill now heads to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law. The following statement can be attributed to Maria Korsnick, president and chief executive officer at the Nuclear Energy Institute.

Congressman Byron Donalds (R-F.L.) recently introduced important legislation to mobilize nuclear energy to aid disaster relief efforts. The National Strategy to Utilize Microreactors for Natural Disaster Response Efforts Act seeks to utilize clean, reliable, and portable nuclear microreactors—instead of carbon-emitting diesel generators—to assist with natural disaster recovery efforts. Providing communities with power in the aftermath of disasters such as hurricanes is essential, especially when the NOAA Climate Prediction Center is forecasting the seventh consecutive above-average hurricane season this year.

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Joe Manchin and Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer reached an agreement on the latest reconciliation bill entitled Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA). The following statement can be attributed to Maria Korsnick, president and CEO at the Nuclear Energy Institute:

When people think about electricity, they generally think of how their houses, cars and appliances are powered. Disruptions to the grid have shown how essential electricity access is, and where and how we get this power matters. Because of this, more clean, reliable, affordable and homegrown power like nuclear energy is absolutely essential to ensuring America’s energy security. But it’s not just about the United States—it’s about the world, as our allies seek to decarbonize and secure their own grids.

The Senate has confirmed the appointment of Annie Caputo and Bradley Crowell to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). This returns the Commission to a full slate of five members.

Chief Nuclear Officers at Nuclear Energy Institute member utilities are expecting to add 90 gigawatts of nuclear power to the grid according to a recent NEI poll. That translates to about 300 new small modular reactors (SMRs) with the bulk coming online by 2050—this level of nuclear energy output would avoid 471 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, over 280,000 tons of sulfur dioxide, and over 235,000 tons of nitrogen dioxide each year.

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. Why is this shift happening now—and what needs to happen for nuclear energy to be universally valued in sustainable investing? We ask the expert, Monica Trauzzi, who is NEI’s Senior Director of External Communications & Climate Finance Strategy and Engagement.

In the face of increased shareholder pressure and ESG requirements, companies are increasingly committing to net-zero, with the number of science-based targets topping 2,940 in the first quarter of this year. Transitioning our electric grid—and eventually our entire economy—to clean energy will take massive investment. NEI’s Monica Trauzzi sat down with Arshad Mansoor, the Electric Power Research Institute’s President and Chief Executive Officer, to talk about the investment needed for decarbonization.