Current and future nuclear energy leaders call to action for innovation

Over 250 nuclear industry leaders, regulators, researchers, government representatives and technology providers have issued a ‘Call to Action’ for accelerating innovative solutions to sustain and advance the current operational fleet of nuclear power plants (NPPs) around the world.

The ‘Call to Action’ emphasizes the four innovations identified by the participants of a three-day Global Forum on Innovation for the Future of Nuclear Energy, co-organized by the IAEA and held from 10-12 June in Gyeongju, the Republic of Korea.

The key goal of the event was to tackle the most urgent challenges facing the nuclear sector and examine barriers and opportunities for deploying innovative technological and process solutions to maintain or even enhance nuclear safety while reducing costs. For this, the participants highlighted 28 innovations on various aspects of operating the current NPP fleet.

The ‘Call to Action’ forms the basis of developing actionable items for deployment and implementation beyond the event itself.

The forum was co-organized by the IAEA, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), the United Kingdom’s National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL), the OECD’s Nuclear Energy Agency (OECD/NEA) and Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP), which hosted the event.

“The nuclear industry is a vital part of the global energy mix, in particular to address climate change because it’s a zero-carbon energy source,” said EPRI Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer Neil Wilmshurst. “This unique forum prioritized critical innovations needed in the nuclear industry, came to an understanding of the barriers and committed to working together to eliminate them.”

Original source: IAEA
Published on 18 June 2019