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). Allowing alternatives to containment structures has been an unresolved Commission policy issue for over 25 years, and has been a significant source of regulatory and financial uncertainty for advanced reactor developers.

This more flexible and performance-based “functional containment” approach was proposed to the NRC by DOE-supported work within the NGNP Project, and later the Advanced Reactor Technology Program. It was more recently confirmed by advanced non-LWR developers to be technology-inclusive through a series of NRC interactions with industry stakeholders earlier this year that were supported by GAIN.For more information regarding the containment flexibilities available to advanced non-LWR developers, please see SECY-18-0096, “Functional Containment Performance Criteria for Non-Light-Water-Reactors.”