U.S. Government Aims To Quadruple Nuclear Energy Capacity By 2050

On May 23, President Donald Trump signed four executive orders that, together, aim to increase U.S. nuclear energy capacity from 100 gigawatts to 400 gigawatts by 2050. As CNN reported, one of the orders seeks to speed up nuclear reactor testing at U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratories by expediting applications and review processes and enabling a pilot program for construction over the next two years. A fact sheet explaining this order is available at this link.

Another order aims to reduce regulations for the DOE and the U.S. Department of Defense to build nuclear reactors on federal land, which a White House official said would allow “for safe and reliable nuclear energy to power and operate critical defense facilities and AI [artificial intelligence] data centers.” A fact sheet explaining this order is available here.

A third order directs the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the independent federal agency that regulates nuclear safety, to make decisions on whether to approve licenses for new nuclear reactors within 18 months. (Right now the process typically takes several years and involves both safety and environmental reviews.) A fact sheet explaining this order is available here.

The fourth order, which is explained in a fact sheet available at this link, requires the DOE to use authorities granted by the Defense Production Act to seek agreements with nuclear energy companies to enable the government to procure uranium for nuclear weapons.