West Virginia lawmakers hear advance nuclear reactor updates

While the majority of nuclear power plants currently operating are large, have light-water reactors and usually provide about a gigawatt of electrical output, modern “advanced nuclear” reactors are smaller, safer and include various reactor types.

There are currently no advanced reactors in operation, but several potential projects have begun the lengthy application process through the NRC.

“We have ongoing pre-applications with a number of different developers — both light-water, small modular nuclear reactors, as well as the advanced reactors, and we’ve been engaging with a number of them for many years,” said Stephen Philpott, NRC senior project manager for advanced reactor licensing.

With interest in advanced reactors continuing to grow, the NRC has drafted a proposed Part 53 rule-making package called “Risk-Informed, Technology-Inclusive Regulatory Framework for Commercial Nuclear Plants.”

The draft offers a voluntary, performance-based alternative regulatory framework for licensing future commercial nuclear plants.

The proposed rules 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.

The rules accommodate all reactor technologies and include two distinct and self-contained licensing frameworks, intended to offer flexibility for the roles of risk assessment techniques and design approaches in establishing licensing basis information.

A final decision on the package is expected next year, Philpott said.

In August, the NRC approved an emergency planning rule for advanced nuclear reactors, a move that was applauded by Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.

“I applaud the NRC staff and the commissioners for developing and approving this risk-informed rule to help enable the safe use of advanced nuclear technologies,” she said.

Capito encouraged the NRC to continue developing additional safeguards for the deployment of advanced reactors.

“I urge the commission to continue supporting safety rules to facilitate the deployment of smaller, safer nuclear reactors, including the development of a usable ‘Part 53’ regulatory framework for advanced reactors,” she said.

Gov. Jim Justice signed Senate Bill 4 into law in 2022, which opened the door for nuclear power generation facilities to be built in West Virginia.

The bill repealed the state’s 1997 ban on nuclear power, but did not establish any rules or regulations for the use of nuclear energy or say anything about where nuclear plants must be built.

Justice has said the development or placement of nuclear facilities in the state “must be done thoroughly and, above all, safely.”