CORRECTED: The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued an operating licence to AUC LLC for the Reno Creek in-situ leach uranium project in Campbell County, Wyoming.

Japanese utility Chugoku Electric Power Company has submitted to the regulator an amendment to its decommissioning plan for unit 1 of its Shimane nuclear power plant.

Kansai Electric Power Company has submitted an amendment to its decommissioning plan for the shut down units 1 and 2 of its Mihama nuclear power plant in Japan's Fukui Prefecture.

Spain's nuclear safety regulator has given conditional approval for the restart and continued operation of the Garoña nuclear power plant, which has been offline for the past four years. Operator Nuclenor would be required to make a number of safety upgrades.

Japan's Tohoku Electric Power Company has pushed back the expected completion dates of construction work to bolster safety at unit 2 of its Onagawa nuclear power plant and unit 1 of its Higashidori plant. The work must be completed before the units will be allowed to resume operation.

The continued operation of the Loviisa nuclear power plant is safe and meets legal requirements, the Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority has concluded following a review of operator Fortum's first periodic safety assessment of the two-unit plant.

The US House of Representatives - the lower chamber of the United States Congress - has approved a handful of bipartisan bills from the last session of Congress that aim to bolster research on advanced nuclear reactors, allow for more challenges at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and change rules for federal efficiency standards. The Advanced Nuclear Technology Act of 2017 was passed by voice vote on 23 January.

Terrestrial Energy USA announced today it had informed the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission of its plans to license a small modular reactor in the USA. Terrestrial said it intends to start "pre-application interactions" with the regulator this year and to make its licensing application in late 2019.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has concluded a five-day Site and External Events Design mission to Belarus, which is building its first nuclear power reactors. The two Russian-designed 1170 MWe VVER units are scheduled to begin operations by 2020.

The Barakah nuclear power plant has received licences to transport, handle and store nuclear fuel from the United Arab Emirates' Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR). The licences are a milestone towards the loading of fuel into the country's first nuclear power plant.

Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority has confirmed that Kyushu Electric's Genkai units 3 and 4 in Saga Prefecture meet new regulatory standards. The Japan Atomic Industry Forum said today that the decision, which Kyushu announced on 18 January, was based on the NRA's approval of a revised review of reactor upgrade plans at the two 1180 MWe pressurized water reactors.

There might have been a time in the past when the working of government was less visible and decisions announced as a fait accompli. That is not so much the case today - the arc of history reflects global movement toward broadening information flow and participation, says Stephen Burns.