President’s nuclear revival push seeks construction of 10 large-scale units
Pennsylvania-based nuclear equipment company Westinghouse Electric has suggested it could build 10 new AP1000 pressurised water reactor (PWR) units in the US following a boost given to domestic nuclear power by president Donald Trump’s recent executive orders, the Financial Times reported.
Dan Sumner, interim chief executive at Westinghouse, told the Financial Times that the company is "uniquely positioned" to deliver on the president’s push for new nuclear.
"There is active engagement with the administration, including key points of interface with the loan programmes office, recognising the importance of financing to the deployment of the model," Sumner told the UK financial daily.
At the end of May, Trump signed four executive orders aimed at boosting the US nuclear energy industry, including a directive for the US energy department to facilitate the start of construction for 10 large reactors by 2030 and help finance power upgrades for existing reactors. The orders also aim to streamline licensing and construction processes, promote advanced nuclear technologies, and strengthen the domestic nuclear fuel cycle.
Sumner, however, warned that the US does not have the "most favourable" conditions for building large reactors now and said that the executive orders themselves are "not a direct mandate."
In the US, the AP1000, a 1,170-GW Generation III+ PWR, was deployed in two major projects: the Vogtle-3 and -4 nuclear plants in Georgia and initially at the abandoned V.C. Summer Units 2 and 3 project in South Carolina. Construction on both sites began in the early 2010s, after decades of new-build stagnation.
Vogtle-3 started commercial operation in July 2023, while Vogtle-4 followed in April 2024. In 2016, the Watts Bar-2 reactor unit in Tennessee was the last plant to begin commercial operation in the US after a 20-year hiatus.
The V.C. Summer project was ultimately cancelled in 2017 due to cost overruns and the bankruptcy proceedings sought by Westinghouse at the time.
Westinghouse has supplied four AP1000 plants in China, while there are active projects for another eight in the country using a domesticated version of the technology. In Europe, Westinghouse has been selected to provide three AP1000 units in Poland, two in Bulgaria and up to nine in Ukraine.
US utilities have for years largely followed long-term operation strategies for their existing nuclear power fleets, while experts and observers have been claiming the future US market will most likely see the deployment of small and advanced reactors instead of large-scale units.
Westinghouse has not immediately responded to requests for comment at the time of publishing.
