Small modular reactors (SMRs) have recently garnered significant interest in the United States and abroad. The responsibility to review and license SMRs falls to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which has been closely watching small modular reactor developments and is currently conducting detailed pre-application reviews. This paper provides an overview of the Part 52 licensing process, as it has been used in the review of large light-water reactors, and discusses how lessons learned from that experience are being used to prepare for review of future SMR applications. The authors describe NRC’s overall readiness to review such applications and provide the status of selected SMR-related policy issues.
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