Nuclear power

This Böll EU Brief critically assesses the prospects of small modular reactors (SMRs) in Europe. It finds that most SMR designs remain in early development, lack regulatory approval in the EU, and are unlikely to deliver electricity at scale before 2050. Technical, economic and political challenges – including high costs, unresolved waste management, proliferation risks and heterogeneous designs – undermine claims of rapid deployment and cost reductions. The authors conclude that prioritising renewables, storage and electrification is a more credible pathway for timely decarbonisation.

The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2025 reviews global nuclear trends, covering reactor operation, construction and decommissioning, with a focus on major nuclear countries and Taiwan’s completed phaseout. It analyses newbuild programmes, Small Modular Reactors, nuclear–renewables compatibility, and Russia’s nuclear interdependencies. Dedicated chapters assess Fukushima’s ongoing challenges and the status of 218 closed reactors.

The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2024 (WNISR2024) assesses on 513 pages the status and trends of the international nuclear industry. It provides a comprehensive overview of nuclear power plant data, including information on operation, production, fleet age, and construction. The WNISR discusses the status of newbuild programs in existing as well as in potential newcomer nuclear countries.

The climate crisis and energy price explosion have made it clear: the EU cannot afford its dependency on fossil fuels anymore. How to deal with these enormous challenges? Our 100% Renewable Action Plan for the European Commission 2024-2029 describes what needs to happen to harvest the benefits of renewables.

The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2023 (WNISR2023) provides a comprehensive overview of nuclear power plant data, including information on age, operation, production, and construction of reactors. It also includes a special focus chapter assessing Nuclear Economics and Finance.

In several countries in the EU, as well as in the Brussels corridors of the European Union institutions, a vehement debate is currently taking place regarding the demand for more nuclear power. Only five years ago, this attention hardly existed. This study looks at the sudden surge in attention for nuclear energy and tries to understand the role of different actors on the side of the nuclear lobby. It investigates the case of the Netherlands, which turned from a de facto nuclear phase-out country to one where expansion of nuclear energy is currently under preparation, as well as the European Union, where a large minority of Member States have brought nuclear back to the table in many climate-related legislative debates.

The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2022 (WNISR2022) assesses the status and trends of the international nuclear industry. It provides a comprehensive overview of nuclear power plant data, including information on operation, production, construction, and decommissioning. It assesses the status of new-build programs in existing as well as in potential newcomer nuclear countries. The report also compares the development of nuclear power and renewable energy globally.

A continuing insistence on nuclear will be detrimental to our ability to power a Just Transition: while the jobs it creates are few and primarily for the highly skilled, its enormous costs will likely result in austerity policies.