“The administration is all in on speed,” Secretary Wright said, noting that the NRC’s three priorities have been safety, safety, and safety.
However, “over the last few decades, the NRC has focused on bureaucracy, safety, and bureaucracy,” he said. “They care about safety. They always have, but their bureaucracy has gotten the better of that passion.”
A change: The NRC’s Wright took ownership of the commission’s bureaucratic reputation, saying the agency was a “bit slow” prior to 2019. But the four nuclear energy executive orders from the Trump administration—including an overhaul of NRC’s review processes—and the passage of the ADVANCE Act to prioritize advanced reactor reviews are signs that the agency is changing.
“This is the new NRC; the old NRC is gone. We're going to have to look now coming out the other side to be the type of agency that the NRC needs to be for the future,” Chair Wright said.
He also insisted that the NRC will maintain its independence, despite concerns of executive overreach from the Trump administration. This is something Ho Nieh, one of Trump’s nominees to the NRC, is also committed to.
“We are an independent safety regulatory, that is not going to change,” Chair Wright said.
“Nobody wants an unsafe plant . . . no one wants an unsafe medical procedure. No one wants an unsafe isotope going into their body,” he said.
AI global leadership: Energy Secretary Wright said nuclear energy is central to powering the artificial intelligence boom in the U.S. and is key for the U.S. to maintain global leadership.
“We have not had rapid growth in electricity production. If we’re going to lead in AI, in the next five to ten years, nuclear is going to be central to that,” he said.
He also said the agency is committed to getting at least one or two demonstration SMRs on line by July 2026 under its advanced nuclear reactor pilot program. This commitment is a slight pull-back in the goal of having three on line by that deadline.
He also said that the DOE will spend most of its loan program funding to bolster nuclear energy build outs in the coming years.
In addition, NRC Chair Wright acknowledged in order to meet the growing energy demand, more large LWRs will need to be built in the coming years, in addition to SMRs.
“We’re going to need them all,” he said.
“Waterfall” of reactor applications: Right now, there are 24 potential applicants that have engaged with the NRC, and more than 30 that have appeared in the news that have not yet engaged with the NRC.
However, only four companies have active applications before the agency.
But Chair Wright said he expects a “waterfall” of applications in the next couple of years and vowed that “the NRC will not be the roadblock.”
“The NRC has to be ready, and we stand ready to do it all,” he said.
