New York (AFP) – New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced plans Monday to build a nuclear power facility, enlisting a state agency for the first major new US nuclear construction since 2009. Hochul tapped the New York Power Authority to develop a nuclear plant with combined capacity of at least one gigawatt of electricity, according to a New York state press release.
The project is targeted for upstate New York where Hochul, in a speech unveiling the plan, described several communities as being receptive because they “know these are good paying, long-term jobs.” The move comes amid a revival in nuclear energy investments prompted in large part by large technology companies targeting the energy form as a source to fuel massive artificial intelligence data centers. Hochul referenced recent nuclear investments by tech giants Google, Amazon, and Microsoft during her announcement.
But she also tied the push to affordability concerns after a 2021 decision to permanently close a nuclear plant in Westchester County crimped supply. Hochul acknowledged that some residents had questions about safety but expressed confidence in “21st century nuclear design.” She said, “My friends, it’s coming and it’s back and if we don’t jump on, or lead this, they’re going to pass us by. These companies will go elsewhere.”
Energy companies have struggled to add nuclear capacity in the United States since a 1979 meltdown at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania. However, in a sign of the shifting economic calculus around nuclear energy, the utility company Constellation, working with Microsoft, last year announced plans to reopen the facility due to the AI push.
President Donald Trump last month signed an executive order to “reinvigorate” US nuclear energy, including by speeding up the building of new reactors and boosting domestic mining and enrichment of uranium. But Hochul said Trump will still need to take action to streamline federal permit issuance because getting US approval for nuclear plants can take 10 years or more. “I said it to the president. If you want energy dominance, I want energy dominance,” Hochul said. “This is how we do it.”
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