The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Dominance Financing recently issued a conditional loan commitment to finance the purchase of long-lead time items needed to rebuild America’s commercial nuclear supply chain.
The $17.5 billion American Nuclear Supply Chain Loans will help finance five eligible projects sponsored by utilities and energy companies nationwide to accelerate the deployment of 10 large-scale commercial nuclear reactors across the United States by up to three years.
“Just over one year ago, President Trump directed the Energy Department and its agency partners to unleash the next American nuclear renaissance. To accomplish that mission, these conditional loans will play an important role in reviving the supply chain needed for America to once again build large-scale commercial reactors,” said U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
U.S. targets 10 new large nuclear reactors by 2030
The project marks a major step toward advancing President Trump’s Executive Order, Reinvigorating the Nuclear Industrial Base, by supporting the objective of having 10 new large nuclear reactors with complete designs under construction by 2030.
“They will also help accelerate the timeline of building those large-scale reactors by up to three years, lowering construction costs and ensuring the United States is able to deliver on President Trump’s bold and ambitious energy addition agenda,” added Wright.
EDF financing will support up to five loans, each loan supporting two reactors at a project site. Westinghouse will partner with up to five eligible utilities and energy companies nationwide to procure the long-lead items at a fixed price.
Each project will be jointly owned by Westinghouse and a utility or energy company partner. Both Westinghouse and the partner are required to fully commit their project equity, $500 million each ($1 billion total per project), upfront prior to accessing DOE loan funds.
The department added that purchasing for each project will be staggered based on the timing of equity commitments and other relevant factors.
It also revealed that Westinghouse has signed letters of intent with seven potential partners, each with identified project sites. Westinghouse’s AP1000® units are the only licensed large-scale advanced commercial reactors operating in the United States today.
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New reactors to power nearly 10 million U.S. households
Each of the 10 AP1000® reactors will generate 1.1 GW of power, with the combined power output from all 10 reactors providing enough electricity to power nearly 10 million U.S. households.
“The loan facilities’ bulk equipment purchase order structure creates a strong commitment to restarting the nation’s nuclear industry by providing the necessary financing for rebuilding the American nuclear supply chain,” the department added.
In doing so, the loan facilities drive down costs for individual nuclear components, create significant supply chain efficiencies and shorten timelines for nuclear deployment by up to three years.
