US Aims to Revive More Nuclear Reactors, Says White House Adviser – Reuters

By Valerie Volcovici

NEW YORK – The Biden administration is actively exploring the possibility of bringing additional decommissioned nuclear reactors back online to address the growing demand for emissions-free electricity, according to White House climate adviser Ali Zaidi.

Currently, two projects are in progress: the planned recommissioning of Holtec’s Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan and a potential restart of a unit at Constellation Energy’s Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania, site of the most severe nuclear incident in U.S. history.

When asked about the possibility of restarting more shuttered plants, Zaidi commented, "We’re working on it in a very concrete way. There are two that I can think of." However, he did not disclose which plants are under consideration or provide additional details about the initiative.

During a talk at the Reuters Sustainability conference in New York, Zaidi highlighted that reviving existing dormant nuclear facilities is part of a three-pronged strategy laid out by President Joe Biden’s administration to enhance nuclear power in the fight against climate change while increasing energy production.

The other two elements of this strategy involve the development of small modular reactors (SMRs) suitable for specific applications, along with the progression of next-generation advanced nuclear reactors.

Biden has advocated for tripling U.S. nuclear power capacity to keep pace with the rising energy demands driven partly by power-intensive technologies such as artificial intelligence and cloud computing.

Recently, the administration finalized a $1.52 billion loan to facilitate the revival of the Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan, with a reopening expected within two years. Meanwhile, Constellation and Microsoft recently established a power agreement aimed at reviving a unit of the Pennsylvania plant, which Constellation hopes will also gain government backing.

Zaidi mentioned that the U.S. Navy had requested information on constructing SMRs at several bases, stating, "SMR is a technology that is not a decades-away play. It’s one that companies in the United States are looking to deploy in this decade."

He also addressed challenges linked to another Biden clean energy objective, which aims to bring 30 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity online by the decade’s end. The administration had to pause offshore wind lease sales this year in both Oregon and the Gulf of Mexico due to low industry demand, compounded by high costs, equipment issues, and supply chain difficulties affecting other projects.

Zaidi noted that at least half of the 30GW goal is already under construction and pointed out that early challenges could serve as valuable lessons for future initiatives.

"I am pretty optimistic about the next wave of projects where we will have a domestic supply chain and hopefully better cost of capital compared to what projects currently face," he remarked.