What can be done to improve the process of getting approval for one reactor design in different countries?

Fortum is capable of continuing to safely operate the Loviisa nuclear power plant until 2050, Finland's Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority has told the country's Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment. The government is expected to issue a decision on extending the two-unit plant's operating licence in the coming months.

Pacific Gas & Electric Company plans to submit a new licence renewal application for its Diablo Canyon Power Plant - California's last nuclear power plant - to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission after the regulator said it will not resume its review of the previously submitted and subsequently withdrawn application.

California-based Oklo Inc has submitted a Licensing Project Plan to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, outlining its plans for pre-application engagement activities that support the future licensing of a commercial-scale nuclear fuel recycling facility.

The New Unit Assistance Industry Working Group's updated Roadmap to Operational Readiness guide is a collection of industry guidance, lessons learned, success stories intended to help new nuclear projects worldwide "prepare for the challenge of safe and efficient nuclear power plant operation". 

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories' draft environmental impact statement for the proposed in-situ decommissioning of the Whiteshell Reactor 1 has now passed the regulator's completeness check and entered the final technical review stage.

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission's authorisation of the 20-year renewal of Cameco Fuel Manufacturing's  operating licence for the facility at Port Hope in Ontario also includes an increase to the plant's annual production limit.

Terms of Reference have been signed and published between the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and the UK Office for Nuclear Regulation for a Memorandum of Cooperation between the two organisations. They plan to share best practice and experience around reviewing Advanced Modular Reactor and Small Modular Reactor technologies.

French radioactive waste management agency Andra has applied for a construction licence for the planned Centre Industriel de Stockage Géologique (Cigéo) deep geological disposal facility for high-level radioactive waste.

Germany's PreussenElektra has received the second and final permit for the dismantling of the single-unit Grafenrheinfeld nuclear power plant from the Bavarian State Ministry for the Environment and Consumer Protection.

Japan Nuclear Fuel Limited has announced that it now expects the reprocessing plant under construction at Rokkasho in Japan's Aomori Prefecture to begin commercial operation in 2024 instead of 2022, as had been previously scheduled.

NuScale Power Corporation has submitted an application for approval of its updated small modular reactor design to US nuclear regulators. The company has also signed a contract with Romania's RoPower Nuclear S.A. for front-end engineering and design work toward the deployment of a VOYGR-6 SMR power plant at Doicești.