Technology-neutral licensing of advanced reactors:Evaluating the past and present NRC framework

Abstract

Advanced reactors have promise as the future of United States nuclear energy infrastructure. However, licensing these reactors presents many new questions for the nuclear community, particularly around developing a “technology-neutral” framework capable of handling a staggering amount of diversity in technologies and operating models. Congress’s enactment of the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act (NEIMA) in early 2019 enables the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to devote substantial resources to developing such a framework. Congress draws a distinction between the existing licensing framework that is focused on light water reactors (LWRs) and the technology-neutral framework that it directs the NRC to establish.