Pro-nuclear lobbying at the EU level is set to double its firepower as European industrial organisations meet in Paris today and tomorrow, to launch a new business alliance for the technology.

This move is an initiative of French industrial organisation MEDEF, and aims to complement the work of an already-existing alliance of pro-nuclear governments in Brussels, set up in 2023 by the French government.

The alliance should be able to rely on 15 business lobbies, including those of Britain and Italy, which are expected to sign a joint declaration tomorrow, a MEDEF official told Euractiv.

Spain, Greece, Ireland, and Portugal should participate as “observers,” while Germany’s BDI won’t take part in the new alliance, in line with the nuclear-sceptic stance which the country’s current government takes in Brussels.

The new platform will work to boost support for the industry and influence the program of the new European Commission, as per a concept note seen by Euractiv.

The alliance will focus on obtaining a “clear and incentivising institutional framework” and on fighting the barriers “preventing effective use, planning, and investment in nuclear technologies,” the document shows.

Next to this, it will work to obtain access to public and private funding, and European financing and guarantees. Other priorities include the creation of a European nuclear ecosystem and developing skills across the value chain.

[DC]