The United States is preparing to launch one of the largest nuclear projects in its recent history, with the construction of reactors worth at least $80 billion, as part of a public-private partnership involving Westinghouse Electric, Cameco, and Brookfield Asset Management. Tuesday's announcement is bang in line with President Donald Trump's proactive energy agenda, which relies on nuclear power alongside oil, gas, and coal to ensure American "energy dominance."
This massive program comes at a time when electricity demand is rising for the first time in two decades, driven by the growth of energy-intensive artificial intelligence data centers. This increased pressure on the power grid is prompting authorities to reconsider the place of nuclear power in the national energy mix.
Under the terms of the agreement, the federal government will organize the financing of the project and facilitate the obtaining of the necessary permits for the construction of the power plants, which will use reactors developed by Westinghouse. In return, the state will obtain a conditional stake, guaranteeing it 20% of cash distributions exceeding $17.5bn once the investment has "vested."
The terms for triggering this stake have not yet been specified, but the government will have to make a final investment decision and sign the construction agreements to activate it.
The announcement sent Cameco's share price up over 24% on the New York Stock Exchange during trading.
A major industrial and political challenge
The US nuclear sector has been stagnating for years, linked to skyrocketing costs, chronic delays, and persistent public opposition over safety and radioactive waste management. The latest reactors built in the country, at the Vogtle site in Georgia, were delivered in 2023 and 2024, seven years behind schedule and at a cost of $35bn, more than double the initial estimate.
To date, no large reactors are under construction in the United States.
To revive the industry, the Trump administration issued an executive order last May directing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to relax its rules and speed up the licensing process, potentially reducing a process that takes several years to 18 months. The stated goal is to build ten new large reactors by 2030.
This initiative has raised concerns, with some observers fearing that rushing ahead could compromise safety, especially since the executive branch has also initiated a review of the staffing levels at the NRC, an independent agency. The NRC has indicated that it will comment on the agreement once it has fully resumed its activities, which are currently hampered by the government shutdown. The Department of Energy has not yet responded either.
Critics also point out that the United States still does not have a permanent storage site for radioactive waste, which remains stored on site in cooling pools before being moved to secure containers.
AI and nuclear power: a promising combination
Despite these challenges, the revival of nuclear power is gaining support, particularly from tech giants. Cloud and artificial intelligence operators, the famous hyperscalers, are increasingly turning to nuclear energy to secure a constant, carbon-free supply.
On Monday, NextEra Energy and Alphabet announced their intention to restart a decommissioned nuclear power plant in Iowa. Meanwhile, Microsoft and Constellation Energy are working to reactivate a unit at the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania, also to power data centers.
Future reactors built under the tripartite agreement will use Westinghouse's advanced nuclear technologies. In addition, the government could require the company to go public if its valuation exceeds $30bn by January 2029 and if public ownership is effective.
Acquired for $7.9bn in 2023 (including debt) by Cameco and Brookfield Renewable Partners, Westinghouse was previously owned by Toshiba before filing for bankruptcy and being taken over in 2018 by Brookfield Business Partners.
A sign of a turning point in US energy policy
With this historic revival of civil nuclear power, the United States intends to combine technological ambitions with strategic objectives. In an energy market disrupted by geopolitical tensions and climate challenges, the long-contested choice of nuclear power is regaining a new centrality, at the crossroads of economic, industrial and political interests.
