The states of Texas and Utah, plus small reactor developer Last Energy Inc., have filed a lawsuit against the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, accusing the federal agency of having too burdensome of a regulatory process to build smaller, and much safer, nuclear energy facilities.
A pdf of the complaint here:
From the complaint: 11. But building a new commercial reactor of any size in the United States has become virtually impossible—indeed, only three new commercial reactors have been built in the United States in the last 28 years. Nuclear Reactors in the United States of America, World Nuclear As’n (last visited Oct. 31, 2024), https://perma.cc/8LTE-HH9X.
12. The root cause is not lack of demand or technology—but rather the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (“NRC”), which, despite its name, does not really regulate new nuclear reactor construction so much as ensure that it almost never happens. Despite the promise of advanced nuclear technology to improve safety and reliability, and despite numerous laws designed to encourage SMR innovation, the NRC’s misreading of its own scope of authority has become a virtually insuperable obstacle. As explained further below, however, this is not the regime Congress created.
13. The NRC imposes complicated, costly, and time-intensive requirements that even the smallest and safest SMRs and microreactors—down to those not strong enough to power an LED lightbulb—must satisfy to acquire and maintain a construction and operating license.
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Last Energy is another nuclear start up company, without any reactors actually in existence yet. From their website, the reactor appears to be a pressurized water design, similar to other integral PWRs like NuScale. Each reactor plant would produce 20 MWe and would involve air cooling, instead of the usual cooling towers or once-through cooling.
The federal laws for licensing nuclear power plants in the United States are the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (AEA) and the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issues licenses for nuclear power plants in accordance with these laws.
Licensing options:
Part 50
The two-step process for licensing currently operating nuclear power plants
Part 52
An alternative licensing process that includes a combined license, Early Site Permits, and certified standard plant
The NRC’s defense in fighting this lawsuit will probably include the fact that they are already working on a separate Part 53 licensing process for advanced reactors.
From the link: The NRC proposes to establish an optional technology-inclusive regulatory framework for use by applicants for new commercial advanced nuclear reactors. The regulatory requirements developed in this rulemaking would use methods of evaluation, including risk-informed and performance-based methods, that are flexible and practicable for application to a variety of advanced reactor technologies.
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Whether or not this Part 53 will be any easier, less cumbersome or less expensive, is yet to be determined. But at least the NRC does apparently recognize that the newer and smaller reactors that often do not use light water for cooling or moderation, are in a separate category.