The World Nuclear Symposium 2023 recently held its closing session. One of the speakers pointed out that the current attitude of many policymakers, much of the public and the financial community is favorable. The speaker said that the nuclear industry “needs to have the courage, be brave and believe in what we are doing.”
Tim Gitzel is the Cameco CEO and President. He said that the need to attack climate change had provided tailwinds for nuclear power in recent years. Energy security is also driving the positive setting for the nuclear industry. He added that “we have a good product, the window is open and we have to deliver ... let's get going”.
Rumina Velshi is the President and EDO of the Canadian Nuclear Safety commission. She said that continuing collaboration was critical within the nuclear industry and regulators. She added that scale and speed were needed, to match the sense of urgency people have about needing to tackle climate change.
Sophie MacFarland-Smith is the Head of Customer Engagement for Rolls-Royce SMR. She said that “drive, not just for Net Zero, but also energy security is massive.” However, she warned there was still a cautiousness in government and so “we need to do what we say ... deliver on our promises, not over-promise”. Government, other stakeholders and the public must be convinced that "nuclear power can be trusted to deliver and nuclear power can make a real contribution to the fight against climate change and energy security”.
Thomas Branche is the Executive Vice President of Assystem. He said that things had progressed from five years ago when the wish would have been for a clear vision from governments. He added that it was time to be “construction oriented.” He also emphasized that there were different issues and attitudes in different countries. However, it was always important to get support from people living in the locality of proposed sites.
Erick van Egeraat is an architect. He urged the nuclear power industry to not see itself as a special case. He said that he had worked on many large-scale projects, and it was the nature of such projects that they take a long time to deliver. He also noted that the aesthetics of a nuclear power plant could help public acceptance.
The session was the final one for the two-day gathering of over seven hundred people from the global nuclear sector. The discussions covered issues ranging from financing new nuclear, to how the industry will be able to security and train enough nuclear staff for the proposed expansion of nuclear energy in the future.
Sama Bilbao y León is the World Nuclear Association Director General. She closed the World Nuclear Symposium 2023with the statement that “we have the recognition of the policymakers, we have the attention of the finance community - now we are ready to get our act together and deliver ... and make the most of the huge opportunity that we have”. She also took a moment to praise Rumina Velshi for her championing of a better gender balance in the nuclear industry.