U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm. | Facebook
U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told attendees at the fifth International Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Power in the 21st Century in Washington that nuclear power’s “low-carbon energy capacity” makes it a promising utility.
Organized by the International Atomic Energy Agency, the conference provided a forum for the discussion of nuclear energy’s role “in the transition to clean energy sources, contributing to sustainable development and mitigating climate change,” a conference announcement said.
Granholm outlined nuclear power’s benefits in her Oct. 27 statement.
“This source of clean, dispatchable, base-load energy can stabilize electricity grids. It can speed integration of other clean energy sources,” Granholm said. “It can support desalination, industrial heat and hydrogen production. And it offers sustainability and resilience. The United States believes nuclear ought to be a part of our long-term energy mix.”
The U.S. is committed to maintaining and modernizing its existing fleet as well as “developing a secure, diverse supply chain for nuclear fuel” and “to growing a skilled nuclear power workforce,” Granholm said.
“At the same time, we are making significant investments in advanced reactor designs that will offer greater benefits and wider opportunities for deployment, both within and beyond our borders,” the secretary added. “Our support for expanding use of this critical energy resource worldwide comes with an ironclad commitment to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and to upholding the highest standards of nuclear safety, security and nonproliferation.”
Responsible partnerships can advance the global community’s non-proliferation and goals plus an individual nation’s climate, energy and economic objectives, Granholm said. However, she noted, hostilities such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine have trampled “on international norms of safety and security." She added that Russia isn’t a reliable supplier of nuclear power technologies and fuel.
“We will continue to demand that Russia cease all hostilities and immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all its troops and military equipment from Ukraine,” Granholm said. “This is a moment to align ourselves with partners who can be trusted to work in good faith, whose interests accord with our own.”
According to Granholm, the U.S. is working to ensure nations can safely build and expand civil nuclear programs through several efforts, including “the Advanced Reactor International Safeguards Engagement initiative, the International Nuclear Security for Advanced Reactors initiative, and the Foundational Infrastructure for the Responsible Use of Small Modular Reactor Technology [or FIRST] program.”
