IDAHO FALLS — Idaho National Laboratory invited leaders from some of the country’s most influential businesses to discuss plans to finance the future of nuclear research.
Attendees from Google, Meta, Amazon, Goldman Sachs, and many more big-name companies arrived in Idaho Falls on Wednesday for INL’s Nuclear Investor Summit to tour multiple Idaho National Laboratory facilities and speak with other executives about how to support the future of nuclear energy.
“These people in this room represent over a trillion dollars,” says Idaho National Laboratory Director John Wagner. “Nuclear projects are not inexpensive, so they represent decision-makers. You can’t build new nuclear projects without financing, and we need investors to do that.”
The group gathered Wednesday morning with Wagner and David Crane, the U.S. Department of Energy under secretary for infrastructure, to discuss a broad overview of nuclear research’s current state and where researchers hope to be in the future.
Crane says investing in nuclear energy is crucial because it enables facilities like Idaho National Laboratory to further their research, but it also destigmatizes the idea of nuclear energy as a common energy source.
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“We can’t run away from things that are complex when we need them,” says Crane. “With the scientific knowledge out here, this is the key to doing it.”
Wagner reminded the audience that the world cannot produce a “dramatic expansion of nuclear deployment with a business-as-usual approach.”
“The goal is to triple nuclear power generation in the United States by 2050. About 20 additional countries have signed on with the United States for that goal,” says Wagner. “So what does that mean? We have a little under 100 gigawatts of nuclear capacity in the United States right now. We actually have more nuclear capacity than any other country in the world.”
Recent investments
Also on Wednesday, Amazon announced its intention to invest over $500 million in nuclear power, and the Department of Energy also announced its intent to invest $900 million dollars, both pledging to fund the construction of several new Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).
According to a news release from Amazon, the reactors will be constructed, owned and operated by Energy Northwest and can generate roughly 320 megawatts of capacity for the first phase of the project, with the option to increase to 960 MW total—enough to power the equivalent of more than 770,000 U.S. homes.
“Nuclear is a safe source of carbon-free energy that can help power our operations and meet the growing demands of our customers, while helping us progress toward our Climate Pledge commitment to be net-zero carbon across our operations by 2040,” said Matt Garman, CEO of Amazon Web Services, in the release. “One of the fastest ways to address climate change is by transitioning our society to carbon-free energy sources, and nuclear energy is both carbon-free and able to scale — which is why it’s an important area of investment for Amazon.”
A news release from the Department of Energy says the funding will help “to assist the private sector in establishing a credible and sustainable pathway to deploying a fleet of Gen III+ SMRs across the country that advances environmental protection and community benefits, creates new, good-paying, high-quality jobs, and reinforces America’s leadership in the nuclear industry.”
“Revitalizing America’s nuclear sector is key to adding more carbon-free energy to the grid and meeting the needs of our growing economy — from AI and data centers to manufacturing and healthcare,” says U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm in a news release. “Thanks to the President and Vice President’s Investing in America agenda, the nation’s nuclear industry is poised to lead the world in innovative advanced reactor technologies, which will create high-paying jobs while providing the flexible and reliable clean energy we need to support a thriving clean energy future.”
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