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This week we highlight NuScale’s agreement with South Korean infrastructure company Doosan Heavy Industries and recent civil nuclear developments in South Korea. We also note the recent Congressional Service Research report on the legal stipulations of Part 810 authorizations and decisions to include nuclear plants in state clean-energy programs. Lastly, we recommend a new book from Daniel Poneman, who argues the world needs an "all-of-the-above" energy policy - including nuclear power - to combat climate change.
There is no nuclear infrastructure now in Sri Lanka, but that nation will have a significant impact on the future of nuclear security. That is because, in the wake of the horrific terrorist attacks on its churches and hotels, former Admiral James Stavridis has declared that the world is now facing Terrorism 3.0. That means that global nuclear security policies and approaches need to be rebooted to Nuclear Security 3.0 to match the threat.
 
Stavridis notes that Terrorism 3.0 is defined as “globally dispersed, highly lethal, financially capable, deeply innovative,” effectively using the internet to organize, and “seeking over time to obtain weapons of mass destruction” including cyber and radiological.
 
This danger is paired with dramatic innovation in weapons delivery technology. If the battlefield of the future will be defined by “swarms of intelligent machines [delivering] violence at greater volume and high velocity than ever before,” then it can be projected that some of that technology will become available to terrorist organizations over time.
 
The nuclear security issue at its core is about preventing at nuclear facilities outsider attacks, insider sabotage and terrorist access to fissile and radiological materials. Each of those objectives is under stress from these terrorist and technological evolutions.
 
The cybersecurity challenge in the nuclear field is already well established, and while steps are being taken to address it, they are slow, reactive, and uneven. If swarms of intelligent machines deliver high-velocity violence in the future, it is not clear that the protective forces at nuclear facilities will be prepared for this, especially those that rely on local police as the response force. As small, geographically dispersed nuclear reactors make their way onto the electricity grid of developing nations, they must be adequately protected from potential terrorist exploitation.
 
The U.S. spearheaded a 50 plus heads-of-state Nuclear Security Summit process from 2010-16 to strengthen global nuclear security. Unfortunately, none of these issues – cybersecurity, intelligent machine weapon delivery, or advanced reactors - were on the agenda. This is a testament to how quickly the nuclear and technology environment is evolving. But it also was significantly influenced by the reluctance of the participating nations to move beyond prevailing nuclear threat profiles and protection standards. There was a severe lack of imagination and political courage.
 
The summits ended with a bridge to nowhere, and predictably the nuclear security issue has dropped like a rock on the global security priority list. The global security system largely remains a patchwork of uneven effectiveness governed by national regulations.
 
Like the protection of all vulnerable critical infrastructure, the nuclear security chain is only as strong as its weakest link. As the nuclear power environment evolves, with more floating reactors , deployments in contested territories , and remote siting of small reactors, new nuclear security challenges will arise.
 
The absence of U.S. leadership in response to these major evolutions is extremely problematic. Its main competitors, Russia and China, are not enthusiastic about highlighting potential vulnerabilities resulting from their technology. The global nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, is hamstrung by the need for consensus among its members to make major security changes, and even those are non-binding.
 
If terrorism 3.0 is now a reality then we need to advance to nuclear security 3.0, and quick.

Ken Luongo, President of Partnership for Global Security
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There is a strong case to be made for the societal value of nuclear power in the 21st century that is compelling and globally important.
Nuclear Collaboration
NuScale Power signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with South Korean infrastructure company Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction to cooperate on the manufacturing of parts for NuScale’s nuclear reactor concept and could lead to an equity investment by Korean investors.
Nuclear Policy, Governance, and Geopolitics
In South Korea, the business performance of energy-related public enterprises has deteriorated in the past year because of the government’s nuclear phase-out policy. The policy has increased the use of liquefied natural gas and coal-fired power generation, leading to a sharp increase in material costs and operating expenses. The government’s policy has greatly affected South Korea’s position in the nuclear export market.

South Korea is  planning  on offering a modified version of the APR1400 nuclear reactor, called the APR1400+, for export to Saudi Arabia. This is straining U.S.-South Korean relations because the Korea Electric Power Co. claims that the reactor is free from U.S. technology. U.S. energy leaders argue that the APR1400+ still contains U.S. intellectual property. If accurate, South Korea would need to receive U.S. approval to export. The South Korean government has so far taken no official position.

Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) announced that Unit 4 of the Shin-Kori nuclear power plant (NPP) was connected to the electricity grid on 22 April.

France will delay shutting down part of its nuclear industry by ten years. The decision aims to fulfill President Emmanuel Macron’s goal of making the country carbon-neutral by 2050.

Rosatom stated that its floating NPP is ready for commercial operation and is expected to be connected to the power grid in December 2019. The two reactors were successfully brought up to 100% capacity, confirming the operational stability of the equipment.
Domestic Civil Nuclear Developments
The Congressional Research Service published a report on the legal stipulations of Part 810 authorizations. The report was published in response to concerns regarding the Part 810 authorizations approved by Energy Secretary Rick Perry for Saudi Arabia.
 
The DOE has issued a funding opportunity announcement of $7.5 million over three years to help expand and improve the quality of data needed for a wide range of nuclear-related activities including research in nuclear science, nonproliferation efforts, and nuclear power generation.
 
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) awarded $300M Zero Emission Certificates for the Salem and Hope Creek NPPs. NJBPU President Joseph Fiordaliso said the board had a "moral obligation" to do all it can to decrease carbon emissions.
 
The Keep Powering Pennsylvania Act, introduced by Rep. Tom Mehaffie, seeks to expand the state’s renewable energy standards to include nuclear energy in Pennsylvania’s Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard (AEPS) program. If enacted, Pennsylvania would become the fifth state to implement a zero-emission program for nuclear plants.
Noteworthy Research
In a new book, Double Jeopardy, Daniel Poneman argues that the world needs an "all-of-the-above" energy policy that advances the goal of decarbonizing the environment through all available means, including nuclear power. Poneman makes a persuasive case that we can enhance the ability of nuclear power to combat climate change even as we reduce the risks of nuclear terror.
 
In a new position paper, titled Economic and Social Impact Report, FORATOM argues that if Europe is serious about decarbonizing its economy by 2050, one-quarter of the electricity produced in the European Union (EU) will need to continue to come from nuclear. This will allow the EU to reach its carbon-free goals and provide a significant contribution in terms of economic growth and job creation.
 
Deloitte published a new report, Nuclear Energy- Powering the Economy, in collaboration with FORATOM, that analyzes the contribution of the nuclear power sector to the overall economy of the EU. According to the report, the European nuclear industry sustains more than 1.1 million jobs in the EU and generates more than half a trillion euros in GDP.
The Nuclear Conversation
For more than two decades, the Partnership for Global Security (PGS) has developed actionable responses to global security challenges by engaging international, private sector, and multidisciplinary expert partners to assess policy needs, identify effective strategies, and drive demonstrable results.
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