Atoms4NetZero
The Agency’s Atoms4NetZero initiative, launched by the Director General at COP27 in 2022, aims to provide policymakers and decision makers with net zero energy scenario modelling that takes into account the full potential of nuclear power to contribute to net zero emissions through low carbon electricity, heat and hydrogen.
“Nuclear power is the only technology that can produce at scale the three low carbon energy vectors needed to reach net zero: electricity, heat and hydrogen.
Scenarios incorporate the constraints countries face as they seek to build energy systems to meet their net zero objectives, and are used by policymakers to determine how best to plan future investments in low carbon technologies and the grid
Atoms4NetZero also helps to assess the potential contribution of advanced nuclear reactors, including small modular reactors, to long term national energy strategies. This includes the use of nuclear energy to decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors such as energy-intensive industry and transport, which generate almost 60% of all greenhouse gas emissions. The initiative will help to develop credible scenarios using Agency analytical tools such as the Model for Energy Supply Strategy Alternatives and their General Environmental Impacts (MESSAGE), the FRAmework for Modelling of Energy Systems (FRAMES) and others.
Beyond modelling, Atoms4NetZero encompasses a number of other activities to assist countries in their transition to clean energy, including advisory services to support long term energy strategy development, workshops and training for capacity building, and outreach and stakeholder engagement.
The Second International Conference on Climate Change and the Role of Nuclear Power 2023: Atoms4NetZero took place in Vienna in October 2023. Participants discussed the role of nuclear power in the global clean energy transition, and in providing security of supply, helping to decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors and contributing to energy system resilience. Participants stressed that nuclear energy plays a pivotal role in addressing climate change but must overcome a number of challenges in order to achieve the doubling or more of current capacity that, according to several authoritative studies, is needed to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.