Nuclear Power Gets a Boost from The U.S. Government

The Wall Street Journal published a story today about the recent approval of loan guarantees to build next generation nuclear plants. Equally beneficial would be TeamObama's vocal public support for nuclear energy as an increasing future source of clean electricity generation in the United States. Nuclear has far better potential than wind or solar.

The WSJ chart above shows our dismal ranking among world producers of electricity from nuclear energy. We can and should focus on nuclear as a reliable base load source of electricity which solar and wind cannot now provide.

"...The likely launch of the next generation of nuclear reactors -- a move in the making for at least a decade -- has big implications for the economy and the environment. Expanding the use of nuclear power has the potential to make a significant dent in emissions of carbon dioxide, the most commonly produced greenhouse gas. And Energy Secretary Stephen Chu has made nuclear power an agency priority. [Good news!]

The first round of building would add about seven new reactors to the U.S.'s existing fleet of 104 at a likely cost of more than $40 billion. But the new plants cost so much -- estimates range from $5 billion to $12 billion -- that power companies could have trouble coming up with the equity they must put into the projects, typically 20% to 50% of the total. In addition, technical or regulatory problems could arise, and it isn't certain the plants can be run profitably..."