Nuclear innovation is projected to reach new heights between 2030 and 2035, but the effective implementation of President Trump’s executive orders will determine their success or failure.
The British author Arthur C. Clarke’s statement that “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic” certainly applies to the field of nuclear energy. The image in the mind’s eye when you hear the words nuclear reactor has been transformed by the power of both dramatic and gradual innovations over the past several decades into the small modular reactor (SMR), which is smaller, cheaper, safer, produces less waste, and is more energy efficient than the old reactors of the past. Some of these innovations are already visible, some will become prevalent by 2030, and many more will make their appearance between 2030 and 2035.
President Trump’s four recently issued executive orders will almost certainly play a role in accelerating this trend, as they cover everything from fuel cells to fuel recycling, regulatory reform, exporting nuclear technology, and everything in between. It is highly probable that implementation will be pivotal, especially in two areas: regulation and funding. This has the potential to succeed and produce an independent and effective Nuclear Regulatory Council (NRC) that can regulate a surge of nuclear projects or confusion, delay, understaffing, and the end of the independence of the NRC.
In this episode of Three Questions, Paul Saunders speaks with Dr. Ashley Finan. Dr. Finan is a global fellow at the Center on Global Energy Policy, where she focuses on AI, energy, and national security. She is also a nonresident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center. Dr. Finan was previously the founding Director of the National Reactor Innovation Center and a Division Director in the Nuclear Science & Technology Directorate at Idaho National Laboratory. Dr. Finan holds an SB degree in Physics as well as SB and SM degrees in Nuclear Science and Engineering from MIT.
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