The US nuclear energy industry said it is looking forward to working with president-elect Joe Biden and his team to continue the momentum seen under the Trump administration to support nuclear carbon-free energy as a key source to an increasingly decarbonised economy.

Maria Korsnick, president and chief executive officer of the Washington-based Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), said the Biden team has prepared an ambitious roadmap to combat the climate crisis and secure an environmentally just future, “none of which is possible without nuclear energy”.

“Support for nuclear energy spans across party lines because nuclear power is 55% of our nation’s carbon free energy and therefore is essential to meeting our climate and energy goals,” Ms Korsnick said. “It also provides well-paying jobs, and generates hundreds of thousands of dollars back to the communities we serve.”

She said “now is the time for the Biden administration and congressional leadership to put meaningful actions in place to preserve our largest source of carbon-free energy and pave the way for advanced nuclear technologies”.