- Oct 17, 2011
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Now, a new Trump administration program is sidestepping the regulatory system that's overseen the nuclear industry for half a century. The program will fast-track construction of new and untested reactor designs built by private firms, with an explicit goal of having at least three nuclear test reactors up and running by the United States' 250th birthday, July 4, 2026.
If that goal is met, it will be without the direct oversight of America's primary nuclear regulator. Since the 1970s, safety for commercial reactors has been the purview of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. But the NRC is only consulting on the new Reactor Pilot Program, which is being run by the Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy.
The existing staff of that office recently asked outsiders for help. In an email seen by NPR, the Office of Nuclear Energy requested volunteers from universities to assist in speeding up safety reviews. "DOE is currently evaluating creative ideas to help manage anticipated resource constraints," read the Nov. 17 email, which was addressed to members of the National Organization of Test, Research and Training Reactors.
The new pilot program may be an unproven regulatory path run by an agency with limited experience in the commercial sector, but supporters say it's energizing an industry that's been moribund for decades.
As those companies prepare to test their designs, their path is now being helped by the executive order Trump signed on the day he met with the nation's nuclear executives. The order explicitly placed oversight of commercial test reactors with the Energy Department, and it required Energy Secretary Chris Wright to "approve at least three reactors pursuant to this pilot program with the goal of achieving criticality in each of the three reactors by July 4, 2026." [emphasis added]
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[The NRC] was set up in 1975 by Congress as an independent safety watchdog, said Allison Macfarlane, the former NRC chair. Part of the reason the NRC was formed was because the predecessor to the DOE, known as the Atomic Energy Commission, oversaw both safety and promotion of nuclear power at the same time.
"This was a very strong conflict of interest," Macfarlane said.
In 2022, the NRC rejected a combined license application for Oklo, a new nuclear startup. Oklo had submitted an application to build and operate its small reactor, called the Aurora powerhouse. But the NRC denied the application because it contained "significant information gaps in its description of Aurora's potential accidents as well as its classification of safety systems and components."
Then at the May signing of the executive order [taking things out of NRC's hands], Oklo's CEO Jacob DeWitte appeared behind President Trump applauding the new reactor program at DOE.
Oklo had another connection to the Energy Department — the secretary of energy, Chris Wright, was a member of Oklo's board of directors until he took the helm at the DOE. Wright stepped down following his confirmation in February.
If that goal is met, it will be without the direct oversight of America's primary nuclear regulator. Since the 1970s, safety for commercial reactors has been the purview of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. But the NRC is only consulting on the new Reactor Pilot Program, which is being run by the Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy.
The existing staff of that office recently asked outsiders for help. In an email seen by NPR, the Office of Nuclear Energy requested volunteers from universities to assist in speeding up safety reviews. "DOE is currently evaluating creative ideas to help manage anticipated resource constraints," read the Nov. 17 email, which was addressed to members of the National Organization of Test, Research and Training Reactors.
The new pilot program may be an unproven regulatory path run by an agency with limited experience in the commercial sector, but supporters say it's energizing an industry that's been moribund for decades.
As those companies prepare to test their designs, their path is now being helped by the executive order Trump signed on the day he met with the nation's nuclear executives. The order explicitly placed oversight of commercial test reactors with the Energy Department, and it required Energy Secretary Chris Wright to "approve at least three reactors pursuant to this pilot program with the goal of achieving criticality in each of the three reactors by July 4, 2026." [emphasis added]
--
[The NRC] was set up in 1975 by Congress as an independent safety watchdog, said Allison Macfarlane, the former NRC chair. Part of the reason the NRC was formed was because the predecessor to the DOE, known as the Atomic Energy Commission, oversaw both safety and promotion of nuclear power at the same time.
"This was a very strong conflict of interest," Macfarlane said.
In 2022, the NRC rejected a combined license application for Oklo, a new nuclear startup. Oklo had submitted an application to build and operate its small reactor, called the Aurora powerhouse. But the NRC denied the application because it contained "significant information gaps in its description of Aurora's potential accidents as well as its classification of safety systems and components."
Then at the May signing of the executive order [taking things out of NRC's hands], Oklo's CEO Jacob DeWitte appeared behind President Trump applauding the new reactor program at DOE.
Oklo had another connection to the Energy Department — the secretary of energy, Chris Wright, was a member of Oklo's board of directors until he took the helm at the DOE. Wright stepped down following his confirmation in February.
