Christopher Hanson, a commissioner of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), has been appointed to concurrently chair the same agency under President Biden’s administration. He succeeds Kristine Svinicki who left the Department of Energy (DOE) on Jan. 20 after about 13 years with NRC, the Department of Energy said Saturday.
Hanson formerly served as senior adviser of DOE’s nuclear energy office and managed nuclear and environmental cleanup programs under DOE’s chief financial officer. He also handled DOE’s coordination with congressional appropriation committees.
The energy expert, during his time with the private sector, spearheaded energy-related government-industry engagements as a consultant for Booz Allen Hamilton.
“I look forward to building on Chairman Svinicki’s many accomplishments as the Commission takes on new challenges and faces new opportunities as nuclear energy technologies continue to evolve and uses of nuclear materials expand in the future,” Hanson said.
Five commissioners, each serving a five-year term, run NRC to develop policy and issue licensee orders related to nuclear energy.