Foratom has welcomed the European Council's decision to remain technology neutral in its strategy on financing sustainable growth and the transition to a low-carbon, resource-efficient economy, but it urges the European Commission to establish a group with expertise in nuclear life-cycle technologies to advise on its EU-wide classification system, or 'taxonomy', the implementation of which has been postponed by two years.

As world leaders meet at the United Nations Climate Action Summit in New York this week, and the World Meteorological Organisation and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change publish new reports, Agneta Rising, director general of World Nuclear Association, stresses that nuclear power is the "unsung hero" in global efforts to reduce carbon emissions.

Nuclear energy has a proven track record of supplying huge volumes of affordable, reliable and dependable clean electricity, but its positive attributes are largely overlooked, according to a new white paper from World Nuclear Association. "The use of nuclear energy is the fast track to a high-powered and clean energy system," the Association says.

The United Nations, the International Energy Agency and the World Energy Council are drawing global attention to the inherent qualities of nuclear power as a clean and reliable source of electricity. Now into its seventh decade, nuclear energy is seen by these and other prominent organisations as an existing and proven solution to the 21st Century challenges of climate change and a sustainable energy transition.

Rapid growth in uranium demand will lead to a need for additional mined uranium in the period to 2040 in all scenarios given in the latest edition of World Nuclear Association's fuel report. Projections for nuclear generating capacity growth have been revised upwards for the first time in eight years, following the introduction of more favourable policies in a number of countries.

Nuclear power plants continue to perform to a high standard and growth is strong, with more than 20 new reactors scheduled to be connected before the end of 2020, World Nuclear Association Director General Agneta Rising says in the latest edition of the World Nuclear Performance Report. But for the industry to reach the Harmony goal of supplying at least 25% of electricity before 2050, Rising says much greater commitment from policymakers will be required.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority of Japan is considering changes that would make the clearance of radioactive material about ten times stricter than international standards, creating unnecessary confusion and cost, writes Dr Charlotta Sanders, senior project manager at World Nuclear Association.

World Nuclear Association was invited to present this week at the opening of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s International Conference on the Management of Spent Fuel from Nuclear Power Reactors, Learning from the Past, Enabling the Future. Mikhail Baryshnikov (TENEX) and Cecile Evans (Orano), chair and deputy chair of the Sustainable Used Fuel Management Working Group, share the industry’s message.

Steps must be taken to increase nuclear's share of the energy mix, said Agneta Rising, director general of World Nuclear Association. Speaking at the 10th Clean Energy Ministerial in Vancouver, Canada, yesterday, she said more nuclear energy is needed to meet environmental, economic and sustainable development objectives.

The International Energy Agency has made policy recommendations for the many countries that see a role for nuclear power in their energy transitions in a new report it plans to discuss today at the 10th Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM10) being held this week in Vancouver, Canada.

Agneta Rising, director general of World Nuclear Association, urges policy makers gathered at COP24 - the 24th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change - to recognise the longstanding role of nuclear power in the low-carbon energy mix.

The search for solutions to climate change must include discussion of nuclear power, Scott Foster, director of the Sustainable Energy Division of UNECE, told World Nuclear News today.