The Atomic Energy Advancement Act Clears the House

The Atomic Energy Advancement Act, which aims to accelerate the deployment of nuclear energy technologies, such as advanced nuclear reactors, was passed by the otherwise highly polarized House of Representatives by the overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 365 to 36. The bill directs the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) "To advance the benefits of nuclear energy by enabling efficient, timely, and predictable licensing, regulation, and deployment of nuclear energy technologies."

In particular, the Atomic Energy Advancement Act (HR 6544) gives the Nuclear Regulatory Commission one year to update the mission statement of the Commission to specifically ensure that the licensing and regulation of nuclear energy activities be conducted in a manner that "does not unnecessarily limit: (A) the potential of nuclear energy to improve the general welfare; and (B) the benefits of nuclear energy technology to society. This is a welcomed shift, as previously, the NRC acted as though their only mandate was "zero accidents." When that translates to zero licensed reactors, that makes us all far less safe because the alternative is the use of deadly fossil fuels. The NRC must now balance these clear priorities!

Representative Jeff Duncan of South Carolina applauded the passage of the HR 6544 saying: “The Atomic Energy Advancement Act restores American leadership in nuclear energy and technology which is critical to our economic and national security. I’m proud to lead the most significant update to nuclear energy policy in the United States in over a generation.”

Rep. Diana DeGette, a Democrat from Colorado, who co-led the bill with Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.), released the following statement celebrating its passage: “Tackling the climate crisis means we must modernize our approach to all clean energy sources, including nuclear. From enhancing our energy supply chain to recruiting a highly trained and skilled workforce, this bill makes critical updates to improve safety and ensure our nuclear regulations are up-to-date, pushing us closer to a carbon-free energy future.”

“Nuclear energy is not a silver bullet, but if we’re going to get to net zero carbon emissions by 2050, it must be part of the mix,” DeGette continued. “As this bill heads to the Senate, I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues in the House and Senate to find bipartisan solutions to address our clean energy needs.”

This House bill must now be reconciled with the Senate’s ADVANCE Act (S.1111), which passed in 2023 and was very similar. Once they are reconciled and passed again, the bill can be signed by President Biden.

The Hill, "House approves bipartisan bill aimed at bolstering nuclear energy," by Rachel Frazin, February 28, 2024.
Also see Congress.gov: The Atomic Energy Advancement Act (H.R. 6544).

Rep. Diana DeGette, "DeGette celebrates passage of her bill to improve nuclear energy safety and modernize regulation," Feb. 28, 2024.

Published by Nucleation Capital in Advanced Nuclear, Energy abundance, Future of Energy, Government support, History Timeline, History-making, LINKS, Nuclear competitiveness, Nuclear financing, Nuclear innovation, Nuclear maritime propulsion, Nuclear R&D, Politicians supporting nuclear, Regulatory reform, Solving climate, US competitiveness, US technological leadership, Zero emission energy

July 28, 2023

ADVANCE Act Clears Senate

The ADVANCE Act, included in the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) by the Senate, was passed by the Senate in an 86-11 bipartisan vote. The NDAA now must be reconciled with the version narrowly passed by the House on July 14th, which contains several controversial GOP amendments. Previously, the ADVANCE Act was approved by a bipartisan 16-3 vote of the Environment and Public Works Committee in May.

Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R., W.Va.), Tom Carper (D., Del.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D., R.I.) were the bipartisan group of sponsors who introduced the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy (ADVANCE) Act back in April of this year. Its purpose is to support the preservation, development, and deployment of nuclear energy technologies in the United States.

The legislation was widely welcomed by experts, including the respected Clean Air Task Force, as an effort to strengthen the U.S. nuclear energy sector by creating a supportive policy environment where nuclear energy can expedite the clean energy transition and promote global energy security.

Included in the bill are much needed measures that enhance processes at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, especially the review and approvals of next-gen nuclear reactors, improve the prospects for coal to nuclear projects, and streamline civil nuclear exports, all which will help manage climate change and provide reliable, 24/7, carbon-free energy.

In the words of Shelley Moore Capito, the passage of the ADVANCE Act brings us "one step closer to reestablishing America's preeminence as the global leader in nuclear energy in the 21st century. Not only does our legislation strengthen our national and energy security, it expands a clean, reliable power source that should remain a major part of our future energy mix. The ADVANCE Act achieves these shared goals by making the nuclear licensing process more affordable, predictable, and efficient; creating pathways to repurpose former industrial sites for nuclear reactors in the future; and providing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission the resources needed to help fulfill its mission."

“The complexity of achieving economy-wide decarbonization requires a diverse set of solutions, and nuclear energy has an important role to play,” said Evan Chapman, U.S. Federal Policy Director at Clean Air Task Force. “The bipartisan ADVANCE Act would build on action taken through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act to preserve and expand the United States’ nuclear energy capacity. Doing so would help meet growing energy demand while moving the U.S. closer to achieving its climate goals. It’s an exciting step forward and we stand ready to work with Congress to make this legislation as strong as possible.”

See Nuclear Newswire's "Senate okays defense bill with measure boosting U.S. nuclear sector, to learn more about the ADVANCE Act. Also see the Clean Air Task Force's news about the introduction of the ADVANCE Act from April 5, 2023.

Published by Nucleation Capital in Advanced Nuclear, Energy abundance, Future of Energy, Government support, History Timeline, History-making, LINKS, Nuclear competitiveness, Nuclear financing, Nuclear innovation, Nuclear maritime propulsion, Nuclear R&D, Politicians supporting nuclear, Regulatory reform, Solving climate, US competitiveness, US technological leadership, Zero emission energy

April 20, 2023

Nucleation Presents at ARPA-E Fission Summit

Valerie Gardner, founder and managing partner of Nucleation Capital, and Dr. Rachel Slaybaugh, a partner at DCVC, presented remarks on the topic of "Procuring Investments for Commercialization" in the concluding session of ARPA-E's Fission Summit covering Technology to Market, held in Hollywood, California, April 18-20, 2023.

This was the 2023 Annual Fission Program Review Meeting being held as a showcase of all of the groups funded by ARPA-E for cutting edge research and development of new fission technologies and materials.

Day 1 of the program covered the CURIE and OnWARDS Programs provided an opportunity for the grantees to do project "lightening talks," and covered topics including NRC Engagement, Technology-to-Market preparedness, Industry Perspectives on Reprocessing and Legal Considerations. There were also presentations from TerraPower, GE Global Research, the IDNL, Deep Isolation, Brigham Young University and Citrine Informatics.

Day 2 of the program covered Processing Technologies, Advanced Reactor Waste Disposal, Materials, Microreactors and Enabling Technologies. In addition to remarks from Jon Carmack, Danny Cunningham,, Jenifer Shafer adn Bob Ledoux, there were a range of panels that included speakers from Dow Chemical, EPRI, Southern Company and Westinghouse. The CURIE, ONWARDS, GEMINA, MEITNER AND OPEN Program grantees also gave more lightening talks.

On the third and final day of the event, the discussion shifted to commercialization and raising capital. After Danny Cunningham of ARPA-E gave a quick overview of "How to Commercialize an Idea, John Bistline of EPRI covered a view of the Energy Market in Transition. Following this, Valerie and Rachel discussed how ventures procure investments from venture capital. They presented an overview of how venture capital works and the range of financing prospects that young companies could expect. In a final hat tip to innovation, Valerie described how innovation in the finance and venture fields was enabling a range of non-traditional funds to enter the market with missions to fund high-risk innovation technologies such as advanced nuclear. To view Valerie's slides for the presentation, click the image below.