On 19-20 September, the NEA gathered government and industry leaders for the Roadmaps to New Nuclear 2024 conference in Paris.
Co-hosted with the Ministry of Climate and Enterprise of Sweden, the conference convened 26 countries and the European Union to find concrete ways to achieve their net zero carbon emissions targets by rolling out new nuclear projects more quickly.
The event was the opportunity for several announcements, including the new collaboration between the NEA and the Government of Sweden on an NEA Country-Specific System Cost Study of the Swedish electricity and energy system, and the NEA workshop to address legal challenges associated with the deployment of small modular reactors (SMRs) to be hosted in Stockholm in Summer 2025.
The NEA also announced a new co-operative agreement to work together on projects that will pave the way for new nuclear build. Thirteen countries thus far have expressed interest in joining this agreement which will bring together like-minded countries to address pressing issues such as nuclear finance, supply chain readiness and building a skilled and diverse workforce.
Government representatives from 21 countries released a communiqué highlighting their commitment to nuclear technology as a reliable low-carbon energy source and pledging to work together to fully unlock its potential. They pledged to take actions that would enable, where appropriate, the extension of existing reactor lifetimes, the construction of new nuclear capacity, and the early deployment of SMRs. The statement emphasised a collaborative approach, aiming to engage international financial institutions and multinational development banks where relevant.
The representatives also extended their appreciation to the NEA for its effective co-ordination with stakeholders across their countries. By fostering a network of industry leaders, government officials, researchers, and experts, the NEA has created a solutions-driven platform to support decision-makers. They commended the NEA's progress report in the Brief to Ministers and CEOs presented at Roadmaps to New Nuclear 2024, requesting an updated report to be delivered at the Roadmaps to New Nuclear conference in 2025.
The NEA Committee on Nuclear Regulatory Activities (CNRA), which is comprised of nuclear safety regulatory leaders from NEA member countries, issued a statement reaffirming good regulatory practices. The regulators called for further strengthening co-operation among regulatory authorities “to establish the framework that enables the peaceful use of nuclear energy more efficiently and effectively while safeguarding the safety of people and protecting the environment”.
Nuclear industry associations released a communiqué expressing their commitment to supporting government leaders in advancing clean energy goals. They emphasised their dedication to ensuring the safe and secure operation of nuclear facilities, providing reliable, affordable, and clean low-carbon electricity and heat, and complementing other low-carbon energy sources to achieve net-zero electricity generation. Additionally, they committed to driving decarbonisation in hard-to-abate sectors while creating high-quality, long-term jobs that support economic growth. The industry reaffirmed their readiness to collaborate with governments to reach shared climate and energy targets.
Roadmaps to New Nuclear 2024 included the participation of three multilateral development banks (the World Bank Group, European Investment Bank, and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development) and broad private finance representation (including Citi, Ghuggenheim and BNP Paribas).
Discussions highlighted the cascading impacts that the World Bank Group policy to exclude nuclear energy from its lists of eligible projects has on international development finance and private lending more broadly.
Read more on page 28 of the Brief for Ministers and CEOs.
To inform discussions between ministers and industry CEOs on the readiness of the nuclear supply chains, the NEA carried out the first global survey of OECD nuclear supply chain readiness for nuclear new build.
Working with 17 industry associations the NEA surveyed utilities and supply chain companies across more than 20 countries.
The survey focuses on various aspects of the nuclear supply chain, such as confidence in and visibility along the supply chain as a whole, bottlenecks and challenges to nuclear new build, priority areas for collaboration, as well as conditions for investment.
Read more on page 35 of the Brief for Ministers and CEOs.
Key domestic bottlenecks to nuclear new build projects according to utilities and supply chain companies
The NEA launched a new workforce development initiative, Plan 2035, designed to enhance, accelerate, and build upon current NEA educational activities.
This initiative supports the 2023 OECD Council Recommendation on Improving Gender Balance in the Nuclear Sector.
Plan 2035 will apply innovative approaches and platforms to support members’ efforts to build the needed nuclear workforce by no later than 2035.
Read more about Plan 2035 on page 55 of the Brief for Ministers and CEOs.
The NEA invited 17 young professionals under the age of 30 from14 countries to attend the Roadmaps to New Nuclear 2024.
Forming the Young Professionals Delegation, the group engaged in conversations on the concrete actions needed to tackle the most pressing issues to advance nuclear new build projects.
The Delegation participated in the breakout session on Plan 2035: Building a diverse, inclusive and gender-balanced workforce for the next nuclear energy era and presented a statement calling upon key stakeholders to commit to sustain the Plan 2035 goals, and to create and implement a Roadmaps to Global Nuclear Talent Pool.
On the margins of the conference, the Delegation visited NAAREA (Nuclear Abundant Affordable Resourceful Energy for All) and CEA (Commissariat à l’énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives).
The next edition of Roadmaps to New Nuclear is scheduled to take place in September 2025 in Paris, France, and will be co-chaired by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) of Korea and the NEA.
roadmapsnewnuclear@oecd-nea.org
