Global developments in advanced reactor technologies and international cooperation

There have been broadly two waves of nuclear reactor technology developments. The first wave is the construction of the exploratory Generation I and early Generation II reactors in Canada, Russia, the USA, and Western Europe. The second wave is the rapid scale-up of commercially proven Generation II reactors in North America and Western Europe followed by technology transfer to East Asia after the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl accidents. As of today, majority of the reactors in commercial operation belong to the Generation II designs. We are in the third wave which is the development of Generation III and III+ reactors post-Fukushima. The objectives of Generation III/III+ reactors are radically enhanced safety and improved economics. The third wave also saw the emergence of East Asian vendors from Japan, South Korea, and China offering indigenous reactors to the global market. Parallel to the developments in the third wave, the nuclear industry seems to have also ventured into the fourth wave, which is the development and early demonstration of Generation IV reactors. Through a review of historical developments in nuclear energy worldwide, this paper provides a perspective of future reactor technology and market developments with a view of the changing dynamics in technology and the global market developments.