Through GAIN, U.S. Department of Energy — in close coordination with Nuclear Regulatory Commission — provides nuclear technology developers with regulatory framework development and licensing support. This support and its outcomes take a variety of forms and continue to evolve as technologies mature.
A few high-impact actions that have recently been completed, or are nearing completion, are listed below. If you’d like more information, contact Scott Ferrara, Regulatory Affairs Interface, at scott.ferrara@inl.gov or 208-390-5697.
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Regulatory Update: Major Commission Policy Issue Resolved Based on Utility-Led Licensing Modernization Project (LMP)
June 15, 2020 – The DOE has recently completed its work with industry stakeholders in support of the advanced reactor Licensing Modernization Project (LMP). This project was led by Southern Company (on behalf of industry), coordinated through the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), and cost-shared by DOE.
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Regulatory Update: Status of NRC’s “Readiness for non-LWRs” – Near-Term Implementation Action Plans
June 12, 2020 – “The NRC staff developed a vision and strategy that was coordinated with industry stakeholders in the 2016-2017 timeframe. Its purpose is to assure that the NRC is ready to review potential applications for non-light water reactor (non-LWR) technologies effectively and efficiently.
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Regulatory Update: Oklo’s Combined License Application Accepted by NRC for Review
June 5, 2020- The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) accepted Oklo Power LLC’s combined license application for review. The application seeks approval to build and operate its Aurora reactor at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) site in Idaho.
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Regulatory Update: Industry-Led Technology-Inclusive Content of Application Project (TICAP)
March 9, 2020 – The TICAP is an industry-led and DOE cost-shared effort to develop technology-inclusive guidance regarding the expectations for the content for specific portions of the safety analysis report (SAR) that would be used to support an advanced reactor application.
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Regulatory Update: Key Commission Policy Issue Regarding Containment Now Resolved
December 4, 2018 – The Commission formally concurred with the NRC technical staff’s recommendations regarding the advanced non-LWR approach for allowing alternatives to large leaktight containment structures (see NRC SECY-18-0096).