Nuclear power is one energy source that both Democrats and Republicans support — but in recent decades, planning and building a major reactor in the U.S. has become nearly impossible. That’s why the Biden administration is planning a $900 million shot in the arm for small advanced reactors that could be built and deployed more easily, writes Zach Bright — in hopes of speeding the deployment of carbon-free energy that’s available 24 hours a day. Congress is also poised to pass a bipartisan bill this week to accelerate the licensing process for the technology. It would be the most federal support the industry has seen in about two decades. One factor is adding urgency to the chase: China’s competitive edge in building the next generation of reactors. The China factor: While the United States remains the world’s nuclear leader, accounting for one-third of global output, China is catching up fast. The U.S. is 10 to 15 years behind China on nuclear power technology, according to a new report by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. China is building 27 reactors, with a goal of 150 new reactors by 2035. The U.S. is building zero — and its most recent major nuclear power project, a $30 billion-plus expansion of Plant Vogtle in Georgia, came in years later than scheduled and more than double its original cost estimate before it finally opened last year. “If the United States is to again become a leader in the nuclear reactor industry, it will need to likewise adopt a coherent national strategy and a ‘whole-of-government’ approach” similar to China’s, the foundation report said. Still waiting for a renaissance: President Joe Biden has made nuclear power a key component in his efforts to clean up the electric grid’s climate pollution. But in competitive energy markets, nuclear power hasn’t fared as well as less expensive natural gas generation and renewable power. So far, small modular reactors have also proved too expensive for commercial developers to bring online. The only U.S. developer with a design approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission scrapped a major project in Idaho late last year. Disposing of reactors’ radioactive waste is also fraught, as the U.S. continues to lack a permanent repository. And nuclear material in the wrong hands can prove deadly. That has led many environmental groups to oppose efforts to boost nuclear power, despite the climate benefits. "The Senate and President Biden must quickly come to their senses and reject the dangerous and unaffordable false promises of toxic nuclear energy,” Food and Water Watch Executive Director Wenonah Hauter said in a recent statement.
| 
