Christine Todd Whitman and Stephen Cheney opine that competition with Russia in the nuclear energy technology industry will continue to be an issue as Asian and European nations look for carbon-free energy options like nuclear power.The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission recently released an operating license for a new nuclear energy facility in Tennessee, marking the first U.S. nuclear energy facility to come online in the 21st century. It also comes at a time when many other U.S. nuclear facilities will be prematurely retired or shuttered due to cost pressures.
Because other countries, including rapidly growing counties like India, realize the true value of baseload power to supply their economies with clean electricity, they are actually taking steps to grow their nuclear energy capacity. But the U.S, which has the most stringent and effective nuclear safety regulations, is missing an opportunity by not exporting its expertise to developing nations like India.
The U.S. Department of Commerce predicts that the global market for nuclear power technology will total $740 billion over the next 10 years. Unfortunately, without changes in current U.S. export policy, Russia - and soon, China - could dominate the international nuclear energy market. Setting themselves apart from the U.S., both Russia and China view nuclear technology exports as a strategic tool to solidify long-term relations and influence and provide attractive financing for their nuclear energy businesses.
With strategic foresight, the United States, however, could soon close this gap.
The U.S. Department of Energy soon will release a new rule that will streamline an inefficient and outdated process for approval to export U.S. nuclear energy technology to the international market. This needs to be revised and updated with new regulations.
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Managed & Built by I2M Consulting, LLC | © 2010-
Managed & Built by I2M Consulting, LLC | © 2010-