Executive Orders Go Big on Nuclear

Nuclear continues to be a rare area of consensus across the political spectrum and in the private sector. Last year, Congress passed one of the most significant pieces of pro-nuclear legislation in decades. 25 states took pro-nuclear action, and 7 state public utility commissions approved orders or took action in support of nuclear.

In the private sector, new nuclear partnerships with tech customers total more than 30 gigawatts across the U.S.

And just last month, four Executive Orders were signed that were designed to get more nuclear online – and fast.

Deploying Advanced Nuclear Reactor Technologies for National Security  

This Executive Order aims to accelerate the deployment and integration of advanced nuclear reactor technologies to bolster U.S. national security. This Order directs the rapid development and deployment of advanced nuclear reactors, such as Generation III+ reactors, small modular reactors, and microreactors, to secure energy resilience and meet electricity demand for national security applications on DOD and DOE sites, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) and advanced computing infrastructure. It emphasizes leveraging federally owned nuclear materials and aligning incentives across the government to stimulate private sector investment and innovation.

Reinvigorating the Nuclear Energy and Industrial Base

The Executive Order calls for a federal initiative to revitalize U.S. nuclear energy leadership amid growing competition from China and Russia, citing the need for energy independence, national security, and global industrial dominance. It supports the role of nuclear power as critical infrastructure and a strategic industry that underpins both economic competitiveness and the resilience of military installations, data centers, and domestic manufacturing. It instructs agencies across the federal government to take aggressive actions to expand uranium mining, enrichment, fabrication, and recycling capabilities; support the restart and construction of reactors; and build the nuclear workforce of the future. It also invokes the Defense Production Act (DPA) to strengthen the domestic nuclear fuel supply chain.

Reforming the Nuclear Regulatory Commission

This Executive Order aims to overhaul the NRC’s culture, structure, and regulations, declaring that abundant and reliable energy is vital to U.S. national and economic security. The demand for large-scale deployment of reliable power to support our economy prioritizes the continued operation of the existing fleet, completion of stalled projects, restart of some decommissioning plants and deployment of advanced nuclear reactors more efficiently than the NRC has traditionally acted. While progress has occurred at the NRC in the past few years thanks to policies like the ADVANCE Act, the Order pledges to modernize the NRC to unlock the full potential of nuclear energy as a reliable, dispatchable, and geopolitically strategic power source. 
Reforming Nuclear Reactor Testing at the DOE

The Executive Order calls for a federal initiative to reform and streamline National Laboratory processes for reactor testing by the Department of Energy (DOE). The Order finds that the design, construction, and operation of advanced reactors under sufficient DOE control are, for the time being, for research purposes, and thus fall within DOE jurisdiction, including licensing of reactors outside of national laboratories.

Where We Go from Here

These Executive Orders set out a bold vision for nuclear power in the U.S., including quadrupling the current nuclear capacity by 2050. This ambition sends a clear message of the importance of nuclear energy to the country, but it’s crucial they are implemented in a way that are effective and can achieve our shared goals The industry looks forward to engaging with the Administration on the implementation of these EOs, because they are directed toward huge goals, including 5 GW of power uprates to existing nuclear reactors and construction beginning for 10 new large reactors by 2030.

2030 is five years from now. This all really underscores the importance of public sector support, including the tax credits and the lending authority of the Loan Program Office that is being debated in the Senate right now. Prior to the existence of these tax credits, we were prematurely shutting down nuclear plants. But after those tax credits were passed, we started to see power uprates, plant restarts, and decades-long extensions of reactor operation.

Public support is a catalyst for private sector support, and it’s critical to achieve the goals laid out in the orders. We can’t go backwards, especially now.
Recently, NEI joined more than 120 of our member companies to send a letter to Congressional leadership, urging them to retain the credits.

Nuclear tax credits support good jobs, thriving communities, and national security. 
To answer the call in these orders, the whole of the government must come together with the innovation of the private sector to build the future of nuclear. The industry is ready to answer this call to action.