The South African government has published the first phase of its National Infrastructure Plan 2050. The plan aims to create a foundation for achieving the vision of inclusive growth under the National Development Plan, with energy one of four critical network sectors addressed in this phase.
 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hosted a roundtable at Downing Street on 21 March with leaders from the nuclear industry to discuss how to improve domestic energy security and rapidly accelerate nuclear projects in the UK.

Belgium's federal government has decided to allow Doel 4 and Tihange 3 to continue operating until 2035 in order to allow the country to "strengthen its independence of fossil fuels in turbulent geopolitical times". The coalition government had earlier agreed to phase out the use of nuclear energy by 2025.

While support for the continued use of nuclear energy is evenly split in the Swiss population, the majority of people support the lifting of the country's ban on the construction of new nuclear power plants, a poll conducted by market research company DemoSCOPE on behalf of the Swiss Nuclear Forum shows.

The International Energy Agency has set out a ten-point plan that could enable the European Union to reduce its imports of natural gas from Russia by more than one-third within a year, including maximising generation from existing low-emissions sources such as nuclear.

President Rodrigo Duterte has signed an executive order that outlines the government's position for the inclusion of nuclear energy in the Philippines' energy mix, taking into account economic, political, social and environmental objectives.

The legislative body for San Luis Obispo County has expressed its support for keeping open the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, voting to ask California Governor Gavin Newsom to ensure Pacific Gas & Electric Company has the necessary permits to keep the state's only remaining nuclear power plant in operation.

Days after it launched a USD6 billion programme to support the continued operation of existing nuclear power plants, the Department of Energy has set in motion its programme to invest USD9.5 billion in clean hydrogen technologies which may include the use of nuclear power.

The Tennessee Valley Authority has announced a new nuclear programme to explore advanced nuclear technology as part of its decarbonisation goals. One of its first tasks will be to pursue a construction licence application for a light-water, small modular reactor at the Clinch River site.

France will construct six new nuclear power reactors, consider building a further eight and push ahead with the development of small modular reactors, President Emmanuel Macron has said.

The debate over sustainable investment rules has highlighted the differences within the European Union on the ideal and/or possible energy mix in a carbon-constrained world where the EU wants to be a role model. It is time to reform the electricity system in Europe, writes Marc Deffrennes, from the weCare alliance of NGOs which favour using renewables and nuclear to limit carbon emissions.

A bill removing West Virginia's ban on the construction of new nuclear power plants has completed its passage through the state's legislature and will now go to the state's governor for signature. The ban has been in place since 1996.