JOIN NNSA FOR A NEW WEBINAR SERIES - SPRING INTO STRATEGY: RADIATION MESSAGING & OUTREACH

Join the National Nuclear Security Administration's (NNSA) Office of Nuclear Incident Policy & Cooperation for a series virtual workshops, Spring into Strategy: Radiation Messaging and Outreach. 

These interactive virtual workshops are tailored for decision-makers and professional communicators in emergency services across all levels of government, NGOs, and the private sector. They will focus on enhancing public messaging coordination, development, and delivery. Participants will explore proven approaches for building cohesive communication strategies, integrating stakeholder perspectives, and tailoring messages to numerous audiences. The workshops will also highlight innovative outreach techniques to engage communities, establish credibility, and strengthen trust. Participants will leave equipped with practical tools to ensure clear and impactful communication when it matters most.

To ensure an engaging and effective learning experience, virtual workshop participants are expected to actively participate in interactive activities, including polling, group discussions, and scenario-based exercises. Attendees are expected to use audio and cameras, when available, to foster collaboration and enhance group interactions. Active engagement not only enriches the workshop experience for all participants but also ensures a deeper understanding of the material through practical application and shared insights.

These workshops will take place from April through June - see the schedule of sessions below: 

 Crisis Communication Strategies for Radiation Emergencies

Tue Apr 22 12:00 - 02:00 PM

Spokesperson Strategy and Practice for Radiation Emergencies

Tue May 13 12:00 - 02:00 PM

Feeling in the Facts for Radiation Emergencies: How Empathy and Rapport Can Foster Trust When It Matters Most

Thu May 29 12:00 - 02:00 PM

When Minutes Matter: Public Alerts and Warnings for Radiation Emergencies

Tue Jun 10 12:00 - 02:00 PM

Addressing Communication During Radiological and Nuclear Incidents

Tue Jun 17 12:00 - 02:00 PM

The meetings are free to attend, and you can register for them by clicking here. 

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION FOUNDATION RELEASE REPORT ON DOE & SMRS

In a recently published report, “Small Modular Reactors: A Realist Approach to the Future of Nuclear Power”, the Information & Technology Information Foundation (ITIF) makes several recommendations to the Department of Energy (DOE) to encourage shifting the focus of program support to small modular reactors (SMRs). The ITIF claims SMRs “are a more promising technology (than large-scale reactors) with the potential to achieve price and performance parity (P3).” P3 is the ability for a technology to outcompete rival technologies without the assistance of subsidies or regulations.

The ITIF argues that “SMRs are the future of nuclear power, and they could become an important strategic export industry in the next two decades”. The ITIF reasons that SMRs can only achieve this if SMRs reach P3 with conventional energy sources, such as fossil fuels. This means SMRs must exploit economies of scale to become a quick to produce product that can easily scale upwards. 

Scaling Advantages

The ITIF lists “significant advantages” that SMRs possess in terms of potential to scale:

• SMRs can vary in size from 1 megawatt (MW) to 300 MW or more, allowing them to meet a wide variety of needs in a wide variety of markets. 
• SMR designs suited to the production of thermal energy can play a role in industrial decarbonization and desalination. 
• Modular SMRs they can be aggregated to meet the specific amount of energy required. 
• SMRs can use different fuels that are less expensive and easier to produce. For example, designs using molten salt and thorium promise cheaper fuel, lower refueling downtime, and the attributes of these fuels come with inherent safety features that further reduce costs. 
• SMRs generate energy 24/7. They are also a clean energy source, meaning they are attractive prospects for “Big Tech” firms and hyperscalers looking to power data centers

Risks and Risk Mitigation

Despite these advantages, the report also lists four (4) main categories of risks that threaten SMRs potential to scale: technological risk, market risk, regulatory risk, and political risk. The report lists several strategies of risk mitigation to address these risks, such as:

Technological risk mitigation involves promoting close alignment and facility sharing between SMR companies and the National Labs, including Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Pacific Northwest National Lab (PNNL), and Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). The National Labs can provide critical expertise and capabilities such as, simulation modeling and physical test sites, which can play 
especially helpful roles both at earlier stages of research and development (R&D) and later in preparing designs for Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) certification. 

Financial risk mitigation to address market risks means finding ways to share risk between different stakeholders, or finding ways to encourage stakeholders to support projects, In the United States, funding to reduce risk comes from three primary sources: 

1. Government grants for R&D and deployment; 
2. Tax credits for either investment or production (Investment Tax Credits (ITC)/Production Tax Credits (PTC); 
3. Loan guarantees from DOE’s Loan Programs Office (LPO). 

On the demand side, long-term power purchase agreement (PPA), wherein a utility or large end user will agree to buy power at a fixed price for a fixed number of years (as long as 20 years), have been used to reduce risk. 

The report makes note of the approaches other countries are using or exploring to mitigate financial risk that the US could consider:

• The United Kingdom is exploring rate-asset-based support, where ratepayers are required to pay a contribution during the construction period rather than just paying for electricity.
• In Finland, cooperative structures link vendors, construction companies, utilities, and large end users. 
• In several European countries, Contracts for Difference (CfD) provide flexible operating subsidies that are tied tightly to market conditions, offering government subsidies where operating costs are higher than market prices. 
• Many governments have provided loans at below-market rates. In Asia in particular, China has offered very attractive funding packages for new nuclear plants. 

Regulatory risks mitigation means encouraging regulatory actors, such as the NRC, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and State governments to evaluate rules and regulations governing advanced reactor and SMR certification and deployment. Progress has been made with the NRC, which has pursued new rulemaking that aims to provide an optional alternative path for safety and operational certification for advanced reactors, and an exemption-based certification process for SMRs. 

Political risk mitigation involves developing a consensus across multiple parties in support of nuclear SMR development that is sufficiently robust to withstand changes in administration. It can also involve going beyond government funding as the sole or primary source of funding, insulating SMRs from political change. 

Recommendations

The ITIF made the following key recommendations to the U.S. Government; DOE; and NRC, further detailed in the full report:

• Expand funding for basic and applied research, such as through the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP)
• Provide access to testing and validating facilities through the national laboratories to spur certification and further development.
• Support first-of-a-kind (FOAK) deployment through DOE Office of Clean Energy Demonstration and DOE-LPO reform 
• Reorient funding to technologies that have a pathway towards upwards scalability and P3.
• Reconsider the NRC, NEPA and international regulations that govern SMRs 

To read the full report, click here. To read an executive summary of the report, click here. 

REGISTER NOW - NEW NUCLEAR FORUM: MOVING PROJECTS FORWARD IS NEXT WEEK!

A very special thanks to all of our sponsors that are supporting our communities and ECA. We are highlighting all of our networking sponsors, Terrestrial Energy, Fluor, and VERTical for supporting the ECA Forum and contributing to this must-attend event! 

Terrestrial Energy is an industry-leading technology company committed to delivering reliable, emission-free, and cost-competitive nuclear energy with a transformative advanced reactor, the Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR). IMSR plants generate high temperature heat for direct industrial use and for high efficiency electricity generation. With many industrial uses and compelling economic potential, IMSR plants are a powerful tool to drive economic growth, support energy security, and achieve net-zero quickly. To learn more about Terrestrial Energy's mission, visit their website.

Fluor provides engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services to clients across a variety of energy markets. They are an essential partner in the production of safer, cleaner and sustainable energy solutions to meet the world's increasing demand. The Portsmouth Decontamination & Decommissioning (D&D) contract is being executed by Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth, LLC, a Fluor-led partnership. A team of contractors and a workforce of more than 1,900 are working to decontaminate and decommission more than 10 million square feet of contaminated facilities at the DOE plant. To learn more about Fluor's work, visit their website.

FROM THE ATOMIC AGE TO NEW NUCLEAR: 

ENERGY COMMUNITIES READY TO HELP UNLEASH NUCLEAR POWER

September 23 - 25, 2025 | Crystal Gateway Marriott | Arlington, VA

Hosted by ECA with the cooperation of the Energy Facility Contractors Group and DOE-EM, the workshop brings together senior DOE executives, officials from DOE sites, industry leaders, local elected officials, contractors and community stakeholders to discuss EM’s progress to address the environmental legacy of the Manhattan Project and Cold War-era U.S. nuclear weapons program.

Hear from senior DOE leaders, local government officials, and industry leaders about DOE's cleanup priorities, the future of the workforce, and more.

Spring into Strategy: Radiation Messaging and Outreach

Virtual | Multiple Dates

Register Here

ECA New Nuclear Forum 2025 

Idaho Falls, ID | April 22 - 24

Register Here

National Cleanup Workshop 2025

Arlington, VA | September 23 - 25

Learn More Here