Good afternoon, distinguished members and guests of the Miami Chamber of Commerce. It is a great pleasure for me to stand before you today to talk about the rebirth of nuclear energy in this country and what it could mean for Florida.

This nuclear renaissance is something that the industry had been doing the seed work on for many years. And it was something that appeared entirely possible when I retired as president and CEO of the Nuclear Energy Institute in 2005.

Now, with the leadership of Florida Power & Light and other companies in Florida and across the industry, we stand on the verge of seeing it become a reality.

It is also an honor to talk to you—the business community of Miami, the hub of commerce in Florida—about the importance of nuclear energy to this country, and to this state, because, quite frankly, you get it. Your electric utilities get it. Your state legislators get it. And your consumers embrace it.

You understand that nuclear energy is essential to your economic and environmental future because it is a source of abundant, reliable, low-cost, around-the-clock electricity that enhances our energy security. And nuclear energy is environmentally friendly. It produces no air pollutants or greenhouse gases.