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
2025 ANS Winter Conference & Expo
November 9–12, 2025
Washington, DC|Washington Hilton
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
Latest Magazine Issues
Sep 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
October 2025
Nuclear Technology
September 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
IAEA again raises global nuclear power projections
Noting recent momentum behind nuclear power, the International Atomic Energy Agency has revised up its projections for the expansion of nuclear power, estimating that global nuclear operational capacity will more than double by 2050—reaching 2.6 times the 2024 level—with small modular reactors expected to play a pivotal role in this high-case scenario.
IAEA director general Rafael Mariano Grossi announced the new projections, contained in the annual report Energy, Electricity, and Nuclear Power Estimates for the Period up to 2050 at the 69th IAEA General Conference in Vienna.
In the report’s high-case scenario, nuclear electrical generating capacity is projected to increase to from 377 GW at the end of 2024 to 992 GW by 2050. In a low-case scenario, capacity rises 50 percent, compared with 2024, to 561 GW. SMRs are projected to account for 24 percent of the new capacity added in the high case and for 5 percent in the low case.
Technical Session|Panel|Sponsored by RPD
Tuesday, November 14, 2023|3:15–5:00PM EST|Cabinet
Session Chair:
Pavel Tsvetkov (TAMU)
Alternate Chair:
Massimiliano Fratoni
Session Organizer:
Blair P. Bromley
With the exception of remote regions or regions with very small grid demand (<300 MWe), it is anticipated that there should still be a good long-term market for large-scale modular reactors (LMRs) to replace clusters of smaller-sized thermal power generating stations using fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas), and also to build new LMRs at existing reactor sites in the United States, and other nations, especially to supply baseload electricity for major urban centers and metropolitan regions with more than 1,000,000 people. The purpose of this panel discussion is to discuss and review design options, markets and tradeoffs for the implementation of larger-scale reactors that have a number of modular features that can help reduce absolute and relative capital costs, operational costs, and can reduce construction time periods, such that they will have some of the proposed and anticipated advantages of small modular reactors (SMRs). Another issue for consideration and discussion is the sustainability of the nuclear power industry, whereby a given vendor must manufacture and sell a minimum number of reactor units on a periodic basis in order to maintain financial sustainability and technical capabilities and manufacturing infrastructure. Discussion of energy storage and load following capabilities for LMRs is another important consideration.
To join the conversation, you must be logged in and registered for the meeting.
Register NowLog In