Over 100 nuclear societies around the globe have called for world leaders to "follow the science" and recognise that nuclear energy output must at least double by 2050 to meet global net-zero targets. The call comes ahead of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties being held in Glasgow from 1-12 November this year.

Kwasi Kwarteng, British secretary of state for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, highlighted the role of nuclear power in a statement to the House of Commons this week to mark six months since the publication of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's 10-point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution. During the subsequent debate, Members of Parliament quizzed Kwarteng on the government's commitment to nuclear new build.

Herman Halushchenko, vice president of development at Ukrainian nuclear power plant operator Energoatom, has been appointed the country's new energy minister, following approval yesterday by the Verkhovna Rada, the Ukrainian parliament. Halushchenko received support from 305 lawmakers in the 450-seat chamber. The ministry had been under a caretaker minister since the collapse of the previous government in March 2020.

Chairman of the US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Committee Joe Manchin has urged President Joe Biden to support the continued operation of the USA's civil nuclear fleet and prevent further plant closures. In a 20 April letter to the President, Manchin said that preventing the closure of existing nuclear plants is critical to achieving emission reductions and grid reliability.

The European Commission today announced its decision to include nuclear energy in a complementary Delegated Act of the EU Taxonomy Regulation. The decision follows the recent publication of the Joint Research Centre's report confirming nuclear is as sustainable as other taxonomy-compliant energy technologies.

A group of 46 non-governmental organisations from 18 countries has written to Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, calling for the inclusion of nuclear energy in the EU taxonomy for sustainable investments. The exclusion of nuclear, they say, would promote a strategy that is "clearly inadequate" to decarbonise the region's economy.

US President Joseph Biden yesterday announced a USD2 trillion jobs, infrastructure and clean energy plan to reshape the country's economy. Among the proposed investments to tackle climate change, the American Jobs Plan calls for funding for the development of advanced nuclear reactors and for a clean electricity standard to leverage and incentivise more efficient use of the USA's existing fleet of reactors.

The final report of an independent inquiry into the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority's award of the Magnox decommissioning contract, related litigation and its subsequent termination has been published. Led by Steve Holliday, a former CEO of National Grid, the process to hold the Magnox Inquiry began in March 2017. Holliday was asked to conduct an inquiry by Greg Clark, then secretary of state for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

The German government has reached an agreement with EOn, EnBW, RWE and Vattenfall on compensation for the forced premature closure of their nuclear power reactors. The utilities are set to receive a total of almost EUR2.5 billion (USD3.0 billion) in compensation after agreeing to drop all legal actions against the government related to the nuclear phaseout. The final regulation related to the compensation will be made into law by the end of this year.

Jennifer Granholm has been sworn as the 16th US secretary of energy. The former governor of Michigan said the US Department of Energy has the solutions to tackle the climate emergency and the tools to put America on an "irreversible path" to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Nuclear energy must be part of the European taxonomy in order to meet the objective of the Green Deal, thirteen trade unions representing energy and nuclear workers have told Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, in a joint letter. Exclusion of nuclear power will not only have a negative impact on the European nuclear industry but also on electricity-intensive industries, they said.

The Biden Administration opposes the use of Yucca Mountain for the storage of used nuclear fuel and is committed to developing "safe and workable" alternatives, US President Joe Biden's nominee for the position of energy secretary has said. Jennifer Granholm made her remarks at a Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources hearing to consider her nomination, which was held on 27 January.