The Other Nuclear Race
America Is Falling Behind China and Russia on Energy Innovation
By Juzel Lloyd, April 28, 2025
The world is witnessing a new kind of global race—not for authority in space but for control over the global nuclear energy market. Nuclear power had long been considered risky owing to major accidents and budget overruns, hampering its large-scale adoption. But within the past decade, nuclear energy has been making a comeback thanks to the development of small modular reactors. China and Russia are seizing the lead, expanding their domestic capacities as well as exporting nuclear technology and constructing nuclear power plants across a variety of emerging economies.
How to Define Nuclear Success
The Industry Has to Have a Product that Companies Want to Buy
Donald Trump says coal is clean and beautiful, and on April 8 he signed an executive order to encourage its use. Whether or not you share his taste in fuels, the order appears to overlook some critical details of how the power system works, details that nuclear advocates should bear in mind when they talk about what will constitute a “renaissance.” The lesson is that government policy can help identify political priorities, but when policy conflicts with the market, the market will win.
Coal has some attractive attributes. It’s plentiful, here and abroad, its price is fairly stable, and a plant manager can look out the office window and see where the next few months of fuel are coming from. In contrast, natural gas is delivered just in time, wind and sun come when they want to, and even water for hydroelectric dams is variable.
Read the article at The Breakthrough Institute
DOE Allocates First Round of HALEU to Five U.S. Advanced Nuclear Reactor Developers
In a critical step aimed at bolstering advanced reactor development and their domestic nuclear fuel readiness, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued its first round of allocations for high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) under its HALEU Availability Program to five American nuclear developers.
Will Laser Enrichment Be the Future of Nuclear Fuel?
The Department of Energy Has an Opportunity to Support Innovation
Say “nuclear renaissance” and what comes to mind is new, advanced reactors, but radical innovation in the fuel supply chain would be crucial to a world with more nuclear power.
The Department of Energy, with a mandate to “re-shore” reactor fuel production, is facing a decision about the vast store of depleted uranium, left over from decades of low-efficiency enrichment work. If the DOE is bold, it could open the door to a third-generation enrichment technology. The moment is ripe as Western companies and governments seek to replace Russia as a supplier of enriched uranium.
Podcasts
We've added a new menu item under MEDIA called Podcasts. Here you can find links to some of our favorite podcasts.
- Canada Invests in the Next Generation of Canadian-Made, Clean, Affordable Nuclear Energy
- The SMR Gamble: Betting on Nuclear to Fuel the Data Center Boom
- Trump’s NRC chair takes center stage for nuclear’s star turn
- 11 Big Wins for Nuclear Energy in 2024
- This startup is getting closer to bringing next-generation nuclear to the grid
- A world of good
- Spent fuel isn't nuclear waste
- Amazon signs agreements for innovative nuclear energy projects to address growing energy demands
- Google Bets Big on Nuclear: Inks Deal with Kairos Power for 500-MW SMR Fleet to Power Data Centers
- Nuclear Resurgence
The Science Council for Global Initiatives is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All contributions are tax-deductible.