2020 NEA Annual Report

Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic 2020 was a very active and impactful year at the NEA. The Agency quickly adjusted to the situation, switched to virtual methods of interaction, and continued to serve its member countries. The NEA community has stayed in contact via online meetings, WebChats and web-based expert roundtables. A series of online public chats with energy ministers and other senior officials on the major issues of the day was launched alongside “virtual missions” to strengthen collaboration, explore potential future areas of co-operation and share experiences with member and partner countries. Over the course of the past year the NEA released flagship reports on deep geological repositories, reducing the construction costs of nuclear energy, nuclear data and electricity generating costs. It also issued policy briefs on the role of nuclear energy during COVID‑19 and beyond. It organised conferences and workshops corresponding to the needs of member countries in the application and exploration of nuclear science and technology, including the NEA Workshop on Optimisation: Rethinking the Art of Reasonable and a special workshop on the human aspects of nuclear safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Agency also continued supporting nuclear capacity building efforts with events such as the WebChat on Gender Balance, a Global Nuclear Science and Engineering Commencement and the 7th International Mentoring Workshop in Science and Engineering, in which distinguished women scientists and engineers engaged with female high school students from Fukushima, Japan.

Each NEA Annual Report presents an overview of NEA’s activities and publications produced during that year, as well as the latest developments in nuclear energy sector around the world. Published in English and in French, the report covers a wide spectrum of topics that provide governments and other relevant stakeholders with authoritative, reliable information and analyses on current and future nuclear technologies.