The war in Ukraine, energy security issues and rising energy prices are pushing policymakers towards nuclear energy – and small modular reactors (SMRs), which could be the answer to the high costs of large nuclear power plants, are a particularly exciting opportunity, the World Economic Forum in Davos heard.

Rafael Mariano Grossi, director-general of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), told a debate on nuclear energy at the forum, which ended on 26 May, that reactors are already playing a crucial role in Europe where at least 25% of supply – or half the bloc’s emission-free energy – is provided by nuclear.

There is growing interest in nuclear energy in Europe, China, India, South Africa, Turkey, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, where new reactors are either under construction or being considered.