New York’s getting a new nuclear power plant

General presumption of the atomic powerfulness works Indian Point seen from Tomkins Cove, New York earlier it powered down successful April 2021. | Photo: Getty Images

New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced plans contiguous to make a caller atomic powerfulness plant, the archetypal to beryllium built successful the authorities successful decades. 

It’s the latest awesome that atomic vigor could spot a comeback successful the US acknowledgment to wide-ranging enactment from immoderate unusual bedfellows: the Trump medication purporting to question “energy dominance”; tech companies successful request of much energy for AI information centers; and clime hawks connected committee with atomic vigor arsenic a c pollution-free alternate to fossil fuels. 

“The usage of precocious atomic exertion tin supply the State with a greater diverseness of its vigor resources that volition enactment New York’s extremity of a increasing system with a reliable, zero-emission energy system,” New York State Energy Research and Development Authority president and CEO Doreen Harris said successful a press release.

Hochul is directing the New York Power Authority to conception astatine slightest 1 caller tract for atomic vigor upstate with the capableness to make astatine slightest 1 gigawatt of energy (about fractional the capableness of Hoover Dam powerfulness plant). 

The authorities is funny successful advanced reactors that are inactive nether development, successful the hopes of overcoming immoderate of the obstacles the atomic vigor manufacture has faced implicit the years. After a roar successful atomic reactors built successful the 1970s and ‘80s, the exertion struggled to vie arsenic gas-fired powerfulness plants and star and upwind farms became cheaper sources of electricity. Fears astir atomic accidents similar the partial meltdown astatine Three Mile Island and conflicts implicit wherever to store radioactive waste person besides bogged down the industry. 

Next-generation designs for tiny modular reactors are expected to chopped down costs and marque it easier to make caller sites for atomic energy. President Donald Trump signed respective executive orders past period to overhaul the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, velocity up licensing for caller reactors, and truncate biology reviews. Trump’s prime to pb the Department of Energy, Chris Wright, antecedently sat connected the board of a atomic vigor startup with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

The Vogtle powerfulness works successful Georgia has go an illustration of the kinds of problems that person plagued atomic powerfulness projects; it’s the tract of the archetypal all-new reactors built successful the US successful much than three decades. After operation started successful 2009, Vogtle units 3 and 4 yet came online successful 2023 and 2024, astir $17 cardinal implicit budget.

Now, the average age of a atomic reactor successful the US is 42 years old, with galore retiring precocious oregon scheduled to soon shutter. That inclination is starting to reverse, with assistance from Big Tech and authorities incentives. Google and Amazon person some inked agreements to enactment the improvement of next-generation atomic reactors. Meta signed a deal this period to assistance support a reactor built successful the 1980s live for different 20 years. And Microsoft announced a power acquisition agreement past twelvemonth that’s expected to pb to the restart of 1 reactor astatine Three Mile Island. 

New York has a clime extremity of slashing its greenhouse state emissions by 40 percent this decade compared to 1990. The authorities is about halfway to that goal, contempt missing immoderate cardinal deadlines for finalizing contamination regulations.