The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced it has finalised a rule that overhauls the process for contested hearings on reactor and other licensing applications, setting firm schedules designed to complete most cases in about a year and the simplest cases in roughly six months.

According to the NRC, previous hearings often took years to complete.

The new rule creates three hearing tracks – standard, focused and expedited – based on the complexity of the application. It also requires the NRC to include a “standard hearing completion date” in hearing notices, giving applicants and the public a clear expectation for when the NRC intends to complete the proceeding.