A Framework for International Regulatory Efficiency to Accelerate Nuclear Deployment

The success of scaling up clean and secure nuclear energy hinges on deploying a standardized fleet of designs accepted globally. Achieving this requires efficient project assessments, approvals, and licensing to realize economies of scale across the supply chain and in operation. This enhances project reliability, cost-effectiveness, and timeliness while ensuring safety. This report introduces a new phased approach aimed at streamlining international regulatory design reviews. It enables one regulator to utilize outcomes from reviews conducted by others to support their own processes.

 To make this effective, it necessitates:

• Increased government support for collaborative design reviews by regulatory groups.
• Engagement of stakeholders with the phased approach.
• Enhanced coordination among stakeholders involved in existing harmonization initiatives.

This report has been produced by the Cooperation in Reactor Design Evaluation and Licensing (CORDEL) Working Group of World Nuclear Association in cooperation with Canadian Nuclear Association (CNA) and Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI).