The sole licensee of the Canadian CANDU pressurised heavy water reactor technology has formally submitted a Notice of Intent to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission to begin licensing it in the USA.

The receipt of two licences from the Washington Department of Health marks a major milestone for fusion company Helion in its project to build its Orion nuclear power plant.

The two boiling water reactor units at Georgia Power's Edwin I Hatch plant have been cleared by the regulator to operate until the mid-2050s.

Tennessee has become the first US state with its own regulatory framework for nuclear fusion machines.