Nuclear Energy Moving Ahead with Confidence

This presentation is a synopsis of action underway today to revive the nuclear power generation option in the United States. The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) working with U.S. utilities, the nuclear industry, and the U.S. Department of Energy is developing Advanced Light Water Reactor (ALWR) concepts which can become a truly viable candidate for the 1990's and beyond. Both the development program and the design concepts will be addressed. As envisioned by EPRI, the Advanced Light Water Reactor will effect even further improvements on the safety performance of current plants. It will be significantly simpler in all respects, and of robust design with inherent capability to accommodate adverse situations. Its design will be based on proven technology, building on the successful experience of the past quarter century. To be viable, the ALWR must be demonstrably safe, reliable, and economically attractive in comparison to its competitors. It is the objective of the ALWR program to produce a design basis on which all involved utilities, regulators and public — including— can proceed with confidence.