DOE Report Finds More Than 60 Gigawatts of New Nuclear Capacity Could Be Built at Existing Nuclear Power Plants

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today released a report that found more than 60 gigawatts (GW) of new nuclear capacity could potentially be built at operating or recently retired nuclear power plant sites across the country. This additional nuclear capacity could increase access to clean, firm, reliable, and resilient energy while putting our nation on a path to achieve the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal of a net-zero economy by 2050. 

“It is becoming increasingly important for the United States to deliver clean, firm electricity on a gigawatt-scale to meet growing energy demand,” said Acting Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Dr. Mike Goff. “This report offers valuable insight into the possibility of utilizing the nation’s existing nuclear power plant sites to build new nuclear capacity to reach the nation’s clean energy goals.” 

The Evaluation of Nuclear Power Plant and Coal Power Plant Sites for New Nuclear Capacity report evaluated all 54 operating and 11 recently retired nuclear power plant sites across 31 states. The sites were reviewed for factors such as availability of adequate cooling water, proximity to large population centers or hazardous facilities, or unacceptable seismic or flood hazards. 

Early research shows that 41 operating and retired nuclear power plant sites have room to host new reactors. 

The report estimates that these sites could deliver an additional 60 GW or more of new electric power utilizing large light-water reactor technology — such as the AP1000 reactors recently built at Vogtle in Georgia — or 95 GW of electric power using smaller 600-megawatt electric advanced reactors. 

The report also examined the potential of siting new nuclear capacity at sites that have already applied for a combined construction and operating license with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, as well as at retired or soon-to-be retired coal power plant sites. 

This report only serves as a preliminary analysis of sites that can potentially be used for new nuclear builds. Ultimately, utilities and communities must work together to determine whether or not to build a new plant. 

This study was conducted by DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy Systems Analysis & Integration campaign with contributions from researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory.