JANUARY 2021 | International Law Alerts | Nuclear

 

The United Nations’ Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty was approved in July 2017 by 122 nation states. On October 24, 2020, Honduras was the 50th nation-state to sign and ratify the Treaty, which meant the Treaty would enter into force ninety days later, on January 22.

The Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), part of the US Department of Energy, has outlined its plan to support the existing US nuclear generation fleet, demonstrate the latest innovations in nuclear energy technologies and explore new market opportunities

The US Administration has issued an Executive Order on Promoting Small Modular Reactors for National Defense and Space Exploration, which it says will further revitalise the US nuclear energy sector and reinvigorate its space exploration programme

Treaty provisions for three practical issues: the costs, the goal of universality, and the duration of membership and the means for withdraw.

The first multilateral nuclear disarmament treaty in more than two decades, came into force just after midnight on Friday, hailed by the UN Secretary-General as “an important step towards a world free of nuclear weapons”.

Using nuclear plants to generate heat as well as electricity for non-grid industrial applications could be central to deep decarbonisation efforts beyond being a source of zero-carbon electricity

The OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) has launched an initiative together with Poland’s Ministry of Climate and Environment and the International Framework for Nuclear Energy Cooperation (IFNEC) to collaborate on issues of common interest related to innovative nuclear financing

The World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) has completed a pre-startup peer review (PSUR) of unit 6 at the Tianwan nuclear power plant in China’s Jiangsu province