U.S. Sets Targets to Triple Nuclear Energy Capacity by 2050

In order to meet these new deployment targets, we don't need to reinvent the wheel.

Preliminary research from our office shows that a majority of our nuclear power plants could host up to 60 GW of new capacity by building large-scale light water reactors like the AP1000s.

That number could grow to 95 GW if you look at sites that can potentially host small modular reactors.

Many of these sites were originally designed for additional units that were never built, and utilities could take advantage of previous engagements with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to expedite the licensing process.

The study also found an additional 128 to 174 GW of new capacity could also be built near U.S. coal plants depending on the reactor type, which includes small modular reactors.

These smaller reactors would require less up-front capital investment to build - making them more accessible to potential customers and financers.

They could also leverage some of the existing infrastructure at the coal plants, along with the specialized local workforce, to ensure no community is left behind in this transition to a net-zero economy.

The impacts of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, along with recent legislation like the ADVANCE Act that streamlines regulatory processes, have built a wave of momentum for our domestic nuclear sector.

We have rebuilt our entire workforce and supply chains to bring two new AP1000 reactors online in consecutive years and hope to capitalize on the lessons learned from this project.

We're working to restart two retired reactors to bring additional capacity and jobs back to communities in Michigan and Pennsylvania before the end of the decade.

We're working to demonstrate new technologies and lower the risk of developing several advanced reactor designs to bring a diverse suite of clean power systems to the marketplace.

We're bringing key stakeholders to the table to find the best "match" for these systems to ensure their deployment.

And, we're securing the availability of high-assay low-enriched uranium to make sure these technologies are not dependent on foreign entities like Russia when they start up their systems for the first time.

The United States is built to do the hard things.

We can do this, and I hope to see workers like Paul Terek still in the control room when we reach the finish line.

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