Nuclear energy in Australia: a regulatory roadmap to inform decision-making

As pathways to achieve net zero are increasingly being discussed internationally and domestically, the role that nuclear energy might play in Australia's energy transition is drawing mixed views.

While various prohibitions exist under Commonwealth and State legislation relating to nuclear energy, this does not preclude the potential for nuclear energy to be investigated as part of a broader political, technical and social licence debate. To progress that conversation, formulating a regulatory roadmap for how a nuclear energy program might function in Australia would help to further inform decision-making about Australia's future energy mix.

At the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in December 2023 (COP28), the 198 signatories (including Australia) recognised the need for deep, rapid and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in a nationally determined manner, taking into account the Paris