Part 2 of 2 parts (Please read Part 1 first)
Despite decades of decline, the U.S. nuclear fleet continues to supply about twenty percent of the nation’s electricity. Rather than wait years for SMRs to be permitted and built, an interim plan is being drafted for the prevention of further nuclear plant closures and upgrading of the plants so they last another few decades.
Lucas Johnson is with the Nuclear Energy Institute. He said, “The U.S. boasts the highest performing nuclear reactor fleet in the world. License renewals will ensure that clean energy, that would otherwise be lost if a plant were to shut down at the end of its license, will continue to serve as a foundation.”
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRD), along with actions at the state level, has assisted nuclear power plants to compete economically with other forms of energy. IRA funding is being used to restart the Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan.
A one and a half billion dollar commitment was made to Holtec Palisades to recommission the eight hundred megawatt Palisades Nuclear Power Plant in Covert Township, Michigan with the goal of job creation and emissions reduction. Holtec, the owner of the plant is waiting for licensing approval from the NRC and has arranged long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) for the full output of the facility to local utilities.
This plant stopped operating in May 2022 due to lack of funding for extensive upgrades. However, the realities of having a stable grid and providing enough power for AI have caused lawmakers to backtrack from their once staunch anti-nuclear stance. The current administration is now solidly aboard the nuclear energy train.
Jennifer Granholm is the U.S. Secretary of Energy. She said, “Nuclear power is our single largest source of carbon-free electricity, directly supporting 100,000 jobs across the country and hundreds of thousands more indirectly.
Palisades will have its equipment upgraded to current standards with the goal of producing baseload clean power until at least 2051. In addition, Holtec intends to place two SMRs on the site which would add about eight hundred megawatts of additional generation capacity. Plans will be announced by AWS or another hyperscaler or colocation provider to site data centers nearby. Bahran said, “There are already many agreements in place for data centers to be located near existing and planned nuclear plants.”
It may be reasonable for a large colocation provider or hyperscaler to adopt their own SMR. But the cost may be beyond most data center operators. Bahran envisions a business model where several data centers may gather around one SMR to achieve economies of scale.
Bahran added, “With an SMR providing roughly twenty to thirty megawatts and AI data centers having widely variable energy demands, you could have one SMR in an area with multiple users.”
He noted the safety and security benefits of nuclear technology. In the event of a complete loss of power, current nuclear facilities are designed to safely shut down on their own. However, such large critical infrastructure assets pose cybersecurity concerns. They must be protected against cyber-attack or a physical security breach.
Finally, the supply of uranium needs to be guaranteed. Bahran mentioned that there is a need to expand US nuclear fuel sources. He said, “Investment is being made to ensure we have all the parts of the supply chain for a nuclear future.