Westinghouse Is Key to a US Nuclear Revival and Net-Zero Climate ... - Bloomberg
Westinghouse Is Key to a US Nuclear Revival and Net-Zero Climate Goals - Bloomberg
The Alvin W. Vogtle nuclear power plant in Waynesboro, Georgia. The fourth unit (far right) of the first nuclear power plants built in the US for three decades is expected to come online in 2024, nearly seven years behind schedule and billions of dollars over budget.Photo: Courtesy of Georgia Power Company
A US Nuclear Revival — and Net Zero — Depends on Westinghouse
Climate change and geopolitics have restored the fortunes of the onetime world leader in nuclear technology. But without more help from Washington, a budding renaissance in this reliable zero-carbon energy source will stall.
Along a corridor in Westinghouse Electric Co.’s nuclear fuel factory, not far from Columbia in South Carolina, a giant map of the world adorns the wall. Dotted across it are colored labels denoting the US company’s customers. These are the power plants to which Westinghouse delivers batches of atomic fuel.
Traditionally, most were in North America and Western Europe, with some in the more far-flung regions of Asia. There were fewer in Central Europe or the former Soviet Union. That was Russian territory, dominated by the old Soviet nuclear giant, Rosatom. In recent years, however, Westinghouse has started filling in that section of the map.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: nuclear
Nuclear energy provides almost 20 percent of the U.S. electricity supply. Advocates have called for an expanded role for nuclear as an emissions-free fuel source. But the economics of building new reactors are daunting. In addition, lingering safety concerns are an institutionalized part of the calculation of nuclear regulation, and highly radioactive nuclear waste remains a can that public officials have been inclined to kick down the road. The Energy Information Administration projects a sharp decline in nuclear power generation over the next decade, as new nuclear plants — two are planned — are more than offset by anticipated retirements of several operating reactors.