Between 2007 and 2009, 13 companies applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for construction and operating licenses to build 31 new nuclear power reactors in the United States. However, the case for widespread nuclear plant construction has been hampered due to inexpensive natural gas, slow electricity demand growth in a weak US economy, lack of financing, and safety concerns following the Fukushima nuclear accident at a plant built in the early 1970s which occurred in 2011.[3][4]
Most of the proposed 31 reactors have been canceled, and as of August 2017[update] only two reactors are under construction.[5][6][7][8] In 2013, four reactors were permanently closed: San Onofre 2 and 3 in California following equipment problems, Crystal River 3 in Florida, and Kewaunee in Wisconsin.[9][10] Vermont Yankee, in Vernon, was closed on Dec. 29, 2014.
In March 2017, the last remaining U.S.-based new nuclear company, Westinghouse Electric Company, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy because of US$9 billion of losses from its U.S. nuclear construction projects.[11][12] Later that year construction of two reactors of their AP1000 design at V.C. Summer was canceled due to delays and cost overruns[8] raising questions about the future of the two remaining US reactors under construction, since these are also of the AP1000 design.[13]
As of 2021, the private sector focus has shifted toward the development of small modular reactors (SMRs), which could theoretically cut down on the high costs and lengthy construction times of conventional nuclear plants. NuScale Power is the only company thus far to have been granted regulatory approval for an SMR design from the NRC, however.[14] Both Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden have proposed or helped pass legislation that would increase subsidies for new and existing nuclear plants.[15]
- ^ Quiggin, John (8 November 2013). "Reviving nuclear power debates is a distraction. We need to use less energy". The Guardian.
- ^ Hargis, Lynn (September 2003). "PUHCA for Dummies: An Electricity Blackout and Energy Bill Primer" (PDF). Public Citizen.
- ^ Rascoe, Ayesha (Feb 9, 2012). "U.S. approves first new nuclear plant in a generation". Reuters.
- ^ Sovacool, BK and SV Valentine. The National Politics of Nuclear Power: Economics, Security, and Governance (London: Routledge, 2012), p. 82.
- ^ Peter A. Bradford. Delivering the nuclear promise, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, June 2016.
- ^ Eileen O'Grady. Entergy says nuclear remains costly Reuters, May 25, 2010.
- ^ Terry Ganey. AmerenUE pulls plug on project Archived 2012-07-13 at the Wayback Machine Columbia Daily Tribune, April 23, 2009.
- ^ a b Plumer, Brad (31 July 2017). "U.S. Nuclear Comeback Stalls as Two Reactors Are Abandoned". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 August 2017.
- ^ Mark Cooper (18 June 2013). "Nuclear aging: Not so graceful". Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
- ^ Matthew Wald (June 14, 2013). "Nuclear Plants, Old and Uncompetitive, Are Closing Earlier Than Expected". New York Times.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
reuters-20170324was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
reuters-20170330was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "The Fate of America's Nuclear Future Rests on One Utility". fortune.com. 1 August 2017. Retrieved 2 August 2017.
- ^ Parshley, Lois (May 4, 2021). "The controversial future of nuclear power in the U.S." National Geographic. Archived from the original on May 4, 2021. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
- ^ Meyer, Robinson (November 10, 2021). "Nuclear Is Hot, for the Moment". The Atlantic. Retrieved November 21, 2021.