Supercritical carbon dioxide can get much hotter than steam - up to 700°C. It can potentially be used in a Brayton cycle which has the potential to be much more efficient at turning heat from power plants into energy than the traditional steam-based Rankine cycle used in today's thermal power plants.

Dutch Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport Ernst Kuipers has announced that money has been allocated for the construction of the Pallas reactor at Petten, in The Netherlands. The ministry reserves €30 million ($29.5m) for the project this year and €129 million a year from next year.

An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team of experts said Türkiye’s nuclear and radiation regulator showed commitment to continuous improvement of safety and the protection of people and the environment.

In April, the construction of two new reactors at each of the Sanmen, Haiyang and Lufeng nuclear power plant sites in China was approved by the State Council. The approvals were for Sanmen units 3 and 4, Haiyang 3 and 4 and units 5 and 6 of the Lufeng plant.

Last month, Rolls-Royce SMR signed an exclusive agreement with ULC-Energy to collaborate on the deployment of Rolls-Royce SMR power plants in the Netherlands.

Fermi Energia was founded by Estonian energy and nuclear energy professionals to develop deployment of SMRs in Estonia. In July 2019, the company launched a feasibility study on the suitability of SMRs for Estonia's electricity supply and climate goals beyond 2030, following a financing round from investors and shareholders.

The Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority (HAEA) issued the licence for construction of units 5&6 of Paks II in August. Currently, the Paks NPP, built according to the Soviet design, operates four power units with VVER-440 reactors.

The possibility of replacing coal power plants with nuclear capacity is being actively explored in the USA and elsewhere.

Poland plans to have nuclear power from about 2033 as part of a diverse energy portfolio, moving it away from heavy dependence on coal.

The agreement provides for the development of a Comprehensive Plan for the creation of a mineral resource centre in Yakutia using electricity supplied by a low-power nuclear power plant based on two RITM-200N reactors. It outlined possible conditions for the implementation of the project on the principles of public-private partnership.