China and France are two of the world's biggest generators of nuclear energy, with both having large-scale plans to expand capacity in the coming years.

The lawmakers said exempting EDF from U.S. sanctions would allow it to purchase a subsidiary of a U.S. company that had been engaged in nuclear power projects with Rosatom in Hungary, Turkey and Egypt, projects that have been suspended for years due to sanctions.

The study will be developed as one of the deliverables under the Joint Declaration of Intent (JDoI) of the UK-Germany Hydrogen Partnership, signed on September 26, 2023, between the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).

The plan sets out how the UK is going to meet its strategy for cutting greenhouse gas emissions to net zero in order to achieve its own legally binding commitments to curb global warming.

Nuclear energy is a controversial issue in Italy where nuclear-fired power plants were banned after Italians voted in a 2011 referendum against a law for a national nuclear programme.

It trails China and the US in areas such as manufacturing of clean technologies thanks to a mix of burdensome regulations and higher energy prices. Electricity prices in the EU are typically twice to three times higher than in the US.

"This is something that is not binding. Obviously, we are aware that in the G7 there is a country that currently does not want to pursue the development of nuclear energy."

Worries include uncertainty over remaining Russian flows through Ukraine and rebounding gas demand in Asia. A colder-than-normal winter spurring consumption at home is also seen as more likely after two consecutive mild ones.

The capacity for transmitting electricity to Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Italy has been reduced since early March, according to French power-grid operator RTE. That’s depriving those nations of exports of cheaper French nuclear power and boosting wholesale prices across the region.

"If Europe is still importing LNG from Russia, it is because there is a need," a France-based gas trader said. "With our other main suppliers, such as Norway, operating at maximum capacity, it will be hard to completely stop the flow of Russian LNG. We are still not completely out of the crisis."

Russia’s gas-transit agreement with Ukraine also expires at the end of the year, and there’s little clarity as of now if these volumes will still find their way to Europe.

All space missions depend on a power source to support systems for communications, life-support and science experiments. Nuclear power has the potential to dramatically increase the duration of future space missions and their scientific value.

Germany would significantly increase research funding for fusion with an additional EUR370 million (USD403 million) over the next five years.

While hydrogen is at the core of Europe’s plans to eventually wean itself off fossil fuels, there are currently few buyers for the gas as it’s expensive to produce and requires infrastructure investments to make its use more viable.

Polish industrial group Industria has signed a letter of intent with UK-based zero emissions energy and technology developer Chiltern Vital Group to collaborate on the deployment of Rolls-Royce small modular reactors in Poland.