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Nuclear cowboys threaten to derail the industry
Nuclear cowboys threaten to derail the industry
Commentary:
Nuclear cowboys threaten to derail the industry
finance.yahoo.com
/news/nuclear-cowboys-threaten-derail-industry-100000908.html
Andrew Orlowski
August 18, 2025
Just as nuclear energy is coming back into public favor, along comes something nobody wants: a new wave of nuclear cowboys bent on tearing up the safety rules, senior industry figures fear.
Venture capital money has begun to target the nuclear sector, bringing with it the Silicon Valley ethos of “move fast and break things”. Impatient and litigious, these companies are suing to weaken the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). They’ve found an ally in a new wave of policy influencers who say regulators slow things down too much by gold-plating the safety specifications. They point to thousands of design changes required at Hinkley Point C, adding billions to the cost.
But while smarter and simpler environmental changes are needed to rid us of lawfare and the notorious fish discos, slashing away at safety rules puts confidence in the sector at risk.
Some of the newcomers don’t exactly inspire confidence. One litigant, Valar Atomics, was the subject of a scathing investigative report recently. Its co-founder claimed someone could hold one of its spent fuel rods for five minutes without trouble, a statement rubbished by nuclear scientists who calculated a fatal dose would be administered within milliseconds.
This new wave of Silicon Valley-style nuclear start-ups are supported by a wave of well funded lobbyists with roots in the effective altruism movement, rationalist forums and its offshoot, “progress studies”. They include the Centre for British Progress, a new think tank, and Works In Progress, a newsletter. These organizations take an arguably indiscriminate and unsubtle approach to regulation: where there are rules, they must be rolled back. The Centre for British Progress, for instance, has led the campaign to dismantle UK copyright law, a vital economic sector and source of UK soft power, regarding it as an impediment to the development of artificial intelligence. Just as crudely, they regard nuclear safety as just another piece of red tape.
“The radiation health arguments Works in Progress have chosen are not going to hold up scientifically,” says Mark Nelson, founder of Radiant Energy.
Nelson is a nuclear advocate but he argues that the new disruptors don’t really understand what they’re disrupting, and veteran engineers echo his view.
The reason to pay attention to the industry boffins is that taming the atom is a unique challenge. A modern nuclear reactor is the most complex machine that humans have ever created and extreme engineering requires extreme safety, down to the last nut and bolt. In 1988, researchers ran an F-4 Phantom jet fighter into a concrete reactor shell at 500mph, and it barely left a scratch. Today, a plant can withstand a direct hit from an airliner.
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Dan Yurman
dan.yurman@outlook.com
Mobile/Cell: 216-218-3823
https://neutronbytyes.com
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