Updates

March 24, 2024 – The NRC issued new guidance documents to facilitate the licensing process for non-light water reactor designs. This ARCAP guidance was developed to support near-term advanced reactor applicants under 10 CFR Part 50 and Part 52, and also support the 10 CFR Part 53 rulemaking effort. It reflects a technology-inclusive, risk-informed and performance-based structure for NRC license applications. The ARCAP encompassed the industry-led Technology-Inclusive Content of Application Project (TI-CAP) and is built on the outcome of the Licensing Modernization Project.

March 12, 2024 – The NRC expanded its previous international cooperation agreement with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) to now also include the United Kingdom Office of Nuclear Regulation (ONR).  This Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) is intended to result in increased collaboration on the technical reviews of advanced reactor and small modular reactor technologies. Under the terms of this MOC, CNSC, ONR, and U.S. NRC may take each others’ experiences, regulatory information and results into account when conducting technology assessments for the purposes of feedback to vendors or making recommendations for regulatory decisions. 

March 4, 2024 – In response to prior Commission direction, the NRC staff developed draft proposed rule 10 CFR Part 53, “Risk-Informed, Technology-Inclusive Regulatory Framework for Commercial Nuclear Plants,” (Part 53). The draft proposed rule offers a voluntary, performance-based alternative regulatory framework for licensing future commercial nuclear plants.

February 12, 2024 – NEI submitted a letter to the NRC providing an update to industry’s regulatory priorities that are intended to lead to a more modern and efficient regulatory framework for new and advanced reactors.

December 18, 2023 – The NRC has issued the final rule regarding emergency preparedness. The rule and related NRC guidance were effective on December 18, 2023 and address how state-of-the-art facility designs and safety research apply to future operation of small modular reactors and other new technologies.

December 14, 2023 – The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued a construction permit to Kairos Power LLC for the company’s Hermes non-power test reactor in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The permit authorizes Kairos to build a 35-megawatt thermal reactor that would use molten salt to cool the reactor core. Kairos submitted its application to build the Hermes reactor in 2021.

September 11, 2023 – The NRC formally accepted a construction permit application submitted by Kairos Power LLC for its Hermes 2 project. The project consists of two low-power test reactors to support development of Kairos Power’s fluoride salt-cooled, high-temperature reactor (KP-FHR) technology.