ML18030A770

Letter from NEI, Nic, and Nia Submitting White Paper: Ensuring the Future of Us Nuclear Energy: Creating a Streamlined and Predictable Licensing Pathway to Deployment

ML18030A770
Person / Time
Site:	Nuclear Energy Institute
Issue date:	01/23/2018
From:	Nuclear Energy Institute, Nuclear Innovation Alliance, US Nuclear Infrastructure Council
To:	Kristine Svinicki NRC/Chairman
Hayes B
Shared Package
ML18030A769	List: ML18030A770 ML18030A771
References
YT-2018-0016
Download: ML18030A770 (1)

Text

January 23, 2018 The Honorable Kristine Svinicki Chairman U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Rockville, Maryland 20852

Dear Chairman Svinicki:

The undersigned organizations are pleased to convey to you the attached paper, Ensuring the Future of U.S. Nuclear Energy: Creating a Streamlined and Predictable Licensing Pathway to Deployment.

New innovative U.S. technologies currently in design, development and licensing are setting a new standard for nuclear energy. However, this technology leadership is at risk. To ensure continued American leadership in global nuclear markets, the U.S. government should act promptly to create a streamlined and predictable licensing pathway for advanced reactors, thereby supporting innovation, commercialization and deployment of new nuclear technologies.

To ensure that advanced reactors are licensed and built in the U.S., near-term regulatory reforms are necessary. These reforms should focus on achieving the following near-term objectives:

Reversing the trend of increasing regulatory costs and excessively long reviews; Aligning the regulatory framework for advanced reactors with their inherent enhanced safety; Defining licensing options clearly, including options for staged applications and approval; and Providing additional flexibility for changes during construction.

We welcome your leadership and that of the Commission to addressing common ground reform and modernization of the licensing pathway for advanced reactors. We look forward to a continued dialogue on this important technology innovation issue.

Please note that while the paper reflects the consensus of the undersigned organizations, it does not necessarily reflect the specific views of individual members of these organizations.

Sincerely, Nuclear Innovation Alliance Nuclear Energy Institute U.S. Nuclear Infrastructure Council Attachment Copies to: Hon. Stephen Burns Hon. Jeff Baran