CRES Academy Recap: Nuclear 101 

CRES Forum hosted the sixth and final CRES Academy session of 2024, “Nuclear 101: The Role of Nuclear Technologies in Powering the Future.” The session explored the vital importance of nuclear assets for the future of energy in the U.S., including the different regulatory environments that nuclear utilities operate in, the deployment challenges that nuclear technologies face and the federal incentives that are helping support a nuclear renaissance in America. 

Nuclear energy provides reliable, zero-emissions electricity and has the highest capacity factor of any power-generation source. In 2023, U.S. nuclear plants operated at full capacity more than 93 percent of the time. Nuclear assets run 24/7, 365 days a year, providing clean, abundant and safe baseload power. 

The programming featured remarks from Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works Senior Policy Advisor for Energy and Environment Andy Zach, who set the stage for a robust discussion on nuclear energy’s potential to power a low-carbon future. CRES Forum Vice President of Policy and Advocacy Christina Baworowsky then moderated a panel discussion with United Coalition for Advanced Nuclear Power (UCAN) Founding Partner Lucian Niemeyer, Constellation Energy Senior Vice President of Federal Government Affairs and Public Policy David C. Brown, Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) Executive Director of New Nuclear Marc Nichol and Tennessee Valley Authority Federal Affairs Washington Representative Alexa Ingram. 

Panelists covered everything from the present state of nuclear energy in America, recent successes regarding the deployment of new units and reactivation of existing plants, as well as the role that Congress can play in nurturing a pro-nuclear future. 

After remarks were finished, we celebrated our eight new CRES Academy graduates, or those individuals who attended five of six CRES Academy sessions this year! 

CRES Academy provides Republican staff with the opportunity to learn about the policies being championed by Republican leadership to address climate change, energy, resilience and conservation issues. Participants have access to senior policy staffers, who are responsible for developing legislation on key energy issues and gain real world context from impacted industries. 

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