Expanding Nuclear Power for a Sustainable Energy Future

With the advent of AI, there is enormous load growth and demand for new generating capacity. The 2025 World Nuclear Fuel Report[1], which is largely informed by government and utility official targets, projects global nuclear will increase from 398 GWe today to 746 GWe by 2040. The 2040 figure is roughly 60 GWe higher than the similar projection in the 2023 edition of the report. The U.S. Department of Energy calls for subsequent license renewals to 80 years for the existing nuclear fleet and deployment of advanced reactors at scale, tripling U.S. nuclear capacity by 2050[2].

In 2024, 92% of the U3O8 feed purchased by U.S. reactor owner/operators was from foreign countries.
Uranium Marketing Annual Report – U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)

There is only one UF6 conversion facility in the U.S., located in Metropolis, Illinois. This Honeywell ConverDyn plant is licensed for a maximum of 15,000 tons per year, roughly 25% of what is needed for the U.S. nuclear fleet. 81% of the enrichment was performed in foreign countries. The Urenco enrichment plant located in Eunice, New Mexico is the only operational facility in the U.S., and it is limited to producing 5% enriched fuel. Urenco is majority owned by the governments of the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. There is no U.S. source for HALEU which is needed by nearly all advanced reactor designs.

Domestic HALEU Enrichment is an Existential Threat for the U.S.

Nuclear fission is the most powerful phenomena humans have ever managed to harness. Without domestic HALEU enrichment, advanced reactor developers and commercial owner operators will be fully dependent on countries like Russia which is a massive national security risk. As a country, we can’t sit this one out. Nuclear power was invented here in the U.S. It is time to rebuild the domestic infrastructure needed for this incredible technology.