Ø            International Nuclear Power Development Programmes and Initiatives

At the end of 2010, there were 52 nuclear power generating units under construction in the world, equivalent to 13% of the installed world capacity.  They were found mainly in China, India, South Korea and Russia.

The continuous worldwide improvement in the performance of nuclear power stations over the last two decades, the rising cost of fossil fuels and the recognition of man-made causes of climate change have led to a renewed interest in nuclear power.

At the turn of the century, several new evolutionary reactor designs have been put forward.  They are generally called Generation III Reactors, having a much higher safety margin and generally better economics than existing reactor designs.  In China, the AP1000 design from Westinghouse, US being built in Sanmen and Haiyang, and the EFR design from Areva, France being built in Taishan, belong to this generation.

In 2001, a group of Western countries that recognized the role of nuclear energy chartered the Generation IV Internal Forum (GIF), to be joined by the EU, Russia and China in 2006.  GIF late in 2002 announced the selection of six reactor technologies which they believe represent the future shape of nuclear energy, according to cleanliness, safety and economics.  In addition to selecting these six designs for deployment by 2030, the GIF recognized a number of International Near-Term Deployment advanced reactors available before 2015.

The International Framework for Nuclear Energy Cooperation (IFNEC), formerly the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) which was established by the USA in 2006, aims to accelerate the development and deployment of advanced nuclear fuel cycle technologies while providing greater disincentives to the proliferation of nuclear weapons. It is joined by the USA, France, China, Japan and Russia.