With New Reactors, a Better World Awaits
We need every kind of carbon-free technology we can get to address climate change, including some that are currently being designed and deployed.
The next generation of reactors will protect the climate, boost the economy with long-term, well-paying jobs, and ensure our global leadership and national security. Advanced reactors, including small modular reactors (SMRs), will be critical for the electric grid of the future in the United States.
New reactor designs will also provide more than just clean electricity. The next wave of reactors can turn seawater into drinking water. They can start up quickly and provide resilient power even when the grid goes out. Micro-reactors can provide power for remote communities and developing nations. Some designs will run at high enough temperatures to provide heat for industrial processes or assist in more efficient hydrogen production as an alternative fuel, enabling decarbonization of the transportation and industrial sectors.
New reactors will provide built-in, inherent safety features and some designs will even recycle elements in used fuel that still have energy-producing potential.
Making the Promise of New Technology a Reality
Advanced reactors, including SMRs, are the bright future of nuclear energy, but high upfront costs and poorly designed regulations threaten to keep these technologies from reaching the market.
- Private investment in advanced reactor technology, such as SMRs, is not enough, according to small reactor consortium SMR Start. Without government partnership, large costs associated with being the first new reactor to market discourage investments and slow the adoption of new technology.
- Without a predictable and stable path to license new reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission review becomes more time-consuming and expensive, even though new reactor designs are simpler and inherently safer.
If commercialized, advanced nuclear can strengthen our grid, help address climate and maintain a robust domestic nuclear sector.
— Josh Freed, Vice President for the Clean Energy Program, Third Way
State-of-the-Art Reactors Will Power Georgia for Decades
Southern Nuclear is constructing two new, state-of-the-art AP1000 reactors in Georgia, which will both begin supplying carbon-free energy by 2023.
- At the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Southern Co. is building two Westinghouse AP1000 reactors, which use enhanced safety and cooling features. Vogtle 3 and 4 are the only reactors currently under construction in the United States.
- The construction project employs more than 7,000 workers and will provide 800 permanent jobs.
- The new reactors will provide more than 2,200 megawatts of carbon-free energy to the state. Upon completion, the four reactors at Vogtle will provide enough zero-emission electricity to power 1 million Georgia homes and businesses.
- Stay updated with the latest schedules and construction milestones from Southern Nuclear.
What You Can Do to Help Build New Reactors
- Support public-private partnerships to reduce costs to develop and license new technologies.
- Support funding for government research initiatives for nuclear energy.
- Urge the NRC to streamline licensing of advanced reactors to ensure American leadership in nuclear energy.