ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
Latest Magazine Issues
Jun 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
August 2026
Nuclear Technology
July 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
NN Asks: Is the U.S. ready for nuclear construction to accelerate?
Craig Stover
Yes, but . . .
The United States is better positioned today for nuclear construction than it has been in decades. Some of that comes from the experience gained at Vogtle and V.C. Summer. I was part of the team that helped start the V.C. Summer project in 2008, and at that time we were trying to build a nuclear construction workforce from scratch. We learned a lot through that effort, and many of those lessons learned have since been studied, documented, and shared.
The nuclear industry is also benefiting from the wave of investment that started growing around 2020. Over the last five or six years, there has been a serious effort across the country to get ready for new nuclear builds. The U.S. government and the private sector are investing billions of dollars in new nuclear. Much of that work is happening before widespread commercial deployment contracts are signed. This is real, and we need to prepare.
Educational Session|Panel|Sponsored by Innovation
Tuesday, August 6, 2024|1:30–3:00PM EDT|Banyan 1
In Part 1 of innovations for expanding the value of the current fleet and further extending nuclear power plant life, many topics will be covered including Subsequent License Renewal, Extended Power Uprates and Digital Upgrades. Part 2 will cover additional topics supporting generating additional clean, nuclear energy from the existing fleet. This session features an expert panel from suppliers and utilities with a focus on nuclear fuel. Topics include 24-month cycles, Accident Tolerant Fuel (ATF), Higher Enrichments and Burnup and Spent Fuel Storage. A good portion of today’s operating fleet have already realized the benefits of 24-month cycle operations, including significant reduced costs for fewer refueling outages and increased nuclear generation, however there are segments of the operating reactors that have been unable to achieve an economic fuel cycle when limited to 5 weight percent Uranium enrichment. With the introduction of LEU+ (Low Enriched Uranium Plus) and higher licensed burnups, all plants have a clear economic path to 24-month operating cycles. Even reactors already operating 24-month cycles can take advantage of these innovations for more optimized fuel costs or even consider cycles longer than 24-months. Of course, this comes with modifications and licensing efforts for enrichment facilities, shipment from enrichers to fabricators, Fuel Fabrication facilities, shipment from fabricators to reactor sites and the reactors themselves, including spent fuel storage. The panel will provide examples of their innovative approaches and ignite the discussion for all participants around this challenging, but exciting topic.
Michael Boone
Westinghouse
Mike Blom
Duke
Rod Kliewer
Framatome
Prakash Narayanan
TN Americas, LLC
To access session resources, you must be logged in and registered for the meeting.
Register NowLog In
Session Notes
