The announcement was made on 7 June at the group’s annual conference – nucleareurope2022 – in Helsinki, Finland.
Yves Desbazeille, nucleareurope’s director-general said the future of nuclear in Europe is bright once again and the rebranding “has given us a new impetus”.
He said: “We are extremely proud to represent the nuclear industry, hence our decision to rebrand our organisation and make clear exactly who we represent at EU level.”
Mr Desbazeille told the conference it is clear that the situation in Ukraine is “just the tip of the iceberg” when it comes to the energy landscape in Europe.
“We’ve had clear signals over the last 18 months in Europe that the energy crisis – reflected by increasing prices – was looming,” he said. “We will continue to navigate through this crisis as best we can. However, we must also actively take lessons from it. Europe must become less dependent on external sources of energy.”
Highlighting The Advantages Of Nuclear
Given Europe’s energy situation, and the bloc’s efforts to reduce its dependence on outside sources such as Russia, nucleareurope will now focus on highlighting the solutions which the nuclear energy sector can bring.
These include providing a stable, affordable and low-carbon source of electricity, contributing to the production of low-carbon hydrogen and focussing on innovation, in particular the development of small modular reactors.
Mr Desbazeille called on industry, policymakers, stakeholders to “work together for our future. Let’s sit around a table and come up with practical solutions to fighting climate change and to improve Europe’s energy independence.”
Established in 1960, the Forum Atomique Européen – as it was known then – has seen many changes over the last 62 years. For example, the number of issues tackled by the sector has shifted from the “pure” nuclear topics such as the Euratom Treaty, radioactive waste management and innovation, to a broader range of issues which include climate change, environmental matters, sustainability and security of supply. “Hence the importance of having a strong nuclear representation in Brussels,” a statement said.
nucleareurope said its membership is composed of 15 national nuclear associations and six corporate members. As a result, it represents nearly 3,000 European companies working in the industry which support more than one million jobs.
