Nuclear energy is now widely seen as one part of the solution to reducing carbon emissions. But how much of a profile did it get at COP30 - the 30th UN Climate Change Conference, held in Belém, Brazil?

Jonathan Cobb, Senior Programme Lead, Climate, for World Nuclear Association, was in Brazil for the event and in this edition he outlines what was achieved, and not achieved, at COP30 and what the significant moments were for nuclear energy.

He looks ahead to the next editions of COP - in Turkey and Ethiopia - before COP33, which will be held somewhere in Southeast Asia in 2028, and which is due to be when all the National Determined Constributions will have to have been submitted, with a new global stocktake document to be agreed.

Also in this edition we hear from Thomas Lamb, CEO of Myriad Uranium, who talks about the history of, and his hopes for, their Copper Mountain project in Wyoming in the USA. He also considers the impact of AI on uranium exploration.

Key links to find out more:
World Nuclear News

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Episode credit: Presenter Alex Hunt. Co-produced and mixed by Pixelkisser Production

Johan Svenningsson is Country Chairman and CEO of Uniper Sweden as well as being vice chairman and chairman-elect of World Nuclear Association.

In this edition, Svenningsson talks about what has been an eventful few years for the nuclear energy sector in Sweden, and the current positive mood towards nuclear and plans for new nuclear - "it's fantastic, we're basically talking about nuclear 2.0 in Sweden", is how he puts it.

We also hear about: lessons on modular construction from his previous roles in the oil and gas and the pharmaceuticals industry; life-extension work; decommissioning programmes; and how the construction of a deep geological repository is progressing.

Regarding his role with World Nuclear Association, Svenningsson says nuclear is a unique global industry where people learn from each other and share knowledge: "I don't see any other industry which is that global and which is that integrated - we're all competitors, suppliers, customers but we really focus on, and want, nuclear to be a strong part of the future, greener society."

His priorities for the association are the industry's need to deliver, now that the political and financial conditions are increasingly in place. He says that on the political and regulatory front "we've come a long way. I think nuclear is starting to be more on par with other technologies, but there is still a way to go. People are still talking about renewables or nuclear ... we should look at all these technologies to be fossil free".

Other priorities include the need to attract and train a diverse selection of young talented people to the nuclear industry, and also to develop the supply chain as new nuclear projects begin in emerging nuclear countries, or in established countries restarting their nuclear construction programmes after decades.

Key links to find out more:
World Nuclear News
Dismantling of Swedish reactors reaches milestone
Sweden looks to protect nuclear investors from political U-turns
Extended operation of Oskarshamn 3 to be assessed
WNA Board members

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Contact info:
alex.hunt@world-nuclear.org

Episode credit: Presenter Alex Hunt. Co-produced and mixed by Pixelkisser Production

If global nuclear energy capacity is to at least triple by 2050 it is going to need huge, huge investment - estimates suggest $250billion a year for 25 years. So how will it be financed and what are the opportunities and challenges for financiers wanting to get involved?

To find out more, host Alex Hunt is joined by World Nuclear Association's Lola Infante, Senior Programme Lead Economics and Finance, and David Stearns, nuclear finance advisor and consultant.

They consider why nuclear projects have generally been state-financed in the past, and what the industry needs to do to ensure that it attracts private finance for future schemes, including "financing by design" where, as David puts it, "you embed and you write the financial coding at the same time that you're doing your site assessment, at the same time that you're checking your early stage regulatory approvals".

There is discussion of the growing appetite by global investment banks and multilateral banks to invest in new nuclear and the challenges of structuring financing to ensure it is attractive despite the long timescales involved in planning, building and then operating a new nuclear power plant.

They also provide insights into what has been learned so far from the Financing Nuclear Briefing series, which brings the nuclear industry and financiers together to discuss financing issues under Chatham House rules.

Key links to find out more:
World Nuclear News
Investment decisions needed to avoid fuel cycle supply gaps
'Difficult to overstate demand from institutional investors' for nuclear

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Sign up to the World Nuclear News daily or weekly news round-ups

Contact info:
alex.hunt@world-nuclear.org

Episode credit: Presenter Alex Hunt. Co-produced and mixed by Pixelkisser Production