The Time is Now: Nuclear Energy’s Past, Present, and Promise for the Future

with Rani Franovich,
Principal Consultant and Expert Witness,
Nuclear ROSE Consulting, LLC

March 22, 2024

Seventy years ago, President Dwight Eisenhower recognized the enormous potential of atomic energy to improve the public’s general welfare. In 1954 he launched the Atoms for Peace Program. Congress established the Atomic Energy Commission to oversee civilian use of nuclear materials. Thereafter, over a hundred nuclear power plants were built and commissioned in the US. Risk to public health and safety was mitigated through defense in depth. Regulations called for multiple fission product barriers, redundant and diverse safety systems, rigorous training and qualification of reactor operators, and emergency plans as an added layer of protection. Lessons learned from operating experience led to new regulatory requirements, fleet-wide safety improvements, risk-informed operational programs, and very high capacity factors. Despite these enhancements and an exceptional safety record, cheap natural gas and other economic factors drove some nuclear plants to shut down early.

As humankind develops technological advances in the pursuit of improved living standards, demand for reliable energy grows. At the same time, the US has prioritized decarbonization and energy independence, spurring renewed interest in reliable, emission-free nuclear energy for baseload electricity generation and industrial applications, like process heat. Sleek, modern designs are smaller than conventional nuclear plants and utilize passive safety features, further improving risk profiles of a very safe technology. Public sentiment toward nuclear energy is changing, especially among younger generations. To realize its promise, we need a domestic source of nuclear fuel, a modern regulatory apparatus, and research institutions to advance state-of-the-art knowledge and develop a skilled nuclear workforce from a variety of disciplines. These challenges present a tremendous opportunity for colleges and universities with world-class engineering departments to invest in research, development and education – not only in the field of nuclear engineering, but across a wide variety of disciplines needed to fully realize the enormous potential first envisioned 70 years ago.

Before establishing her own consulting company in 2023, Rani enjoyed an accomplished 30-year career in public service with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). She is a qualified NRC inspector and spent six years as a resident inspector at the Catawba Nuclear Station in York, SC, where she acquired an integrated knowledge of plant operations. Thereafter, she served in a variety of leadership roles at the NRC and was a member of its response team to the March 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident.

Rani is active with the American Nuclear Society (ANS), serving as Secretary of the Advance Reactor Working Group and a member of the Risk-informed, Performance-based Principles and Policy Committee (RP3C). Considered an expert in risk-informed, performance-based regulation, she frequently writes and speaks about regulatory modernization. She also is an active member of the New York Regional Expert Witness Association and provides expert testimony on commercial reactor safety, security and policy. Rani advocates for increased representation, diversity, and inclusion of women and minorities in skilled trades as well as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM fields). An occasional guest lecturer at Virginia Tech, she discusses her perspectives on regulation, advocacy, ethics and leadership.

Rani is a graduate of Virginia Tech, where she earned a Master of Science in Industrial and Systems Engineering, a Bachelor of Science with double majors in Psychology and English, and a minor in Sociology.