Decommissioning
The United States is attempting to restart three closed nuclear plants to address increasing energy demands, particularly from data centers. The Department of Energy is providing up to $4.4 billion to revive the Palisades Power Plant, the Crane Clean Energy Centre, and the Duane Arnold Energy Centre, aiming to restore 2.25 gigawatts of electricity.
Danish Decommissioning has submitted a proposal for a final nuclear waste repository to the Danish Agency for Civil Security. This initiative follows legislation from 2018 that mandated geological assessments for a deep geological repository intended to be operational by 2073.
Hinkley Point B, an Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor (AGR) plant, has officially entered its decommissioning phase following the transfer of its operating license from EDF Energy to Nuclear Restoration Services (NRS). This marks the second AGR site to transition to NRS for decommissioning, with all nuclear fuel having been removed and transported to Sellafield.
France is moving forward with the decommissioning of its gas-cooled reactor fleet, with Chinon A2 serving as a benchmark project. The validation of the contractual strategy for dismantling Chinon A2's heat exchangers marks a significant step, paving the way for operational phases to begin by mid-2028. This project involves collaboration between EDF and Cyclife Engineering, and builds on lessons learned from previous decommissioning efforts.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has proposed a new rule addressing two key areas: establishing risk-informed criteria for protecting drinking water near uranium in situ recovery (ISR) sites and streamlining the process for extending decommissioning timelines for all licensees.
A new collaboration hub in Cumbria combines 360-degree visualisation, remotely operated robotics and live data streaming to enable safer, more efficient planning of complex nuclear facility decommissioning work.
India's new nuclear legislation consolidates regulatory oversight and opens the sector to private participation, with a 4 September deadline for stakeholder feedback on implementing rules.
Draft licensing and safety rules enable private and foreign participation in nuclear energy development, with operators required to demonstrate financial and technical capabilities across the fuel cycle.
New draft regulations for India's nuclear sector introduce a unified licensing framework for private participation while restricting foreign reactor designs to self-reliant nations.