The Department of Energy (DOE) has gone public with a new effort to increase power production from U.S.-based nuclear facilities in order to meet expected electric power demand from industrial manufacturers and operators of data centers supporting artificial intelligence (AI) technology providers.
DOE’s Utility Power Reactor Incremental Scaling Effort (UPRISE) aims to help further a Trump administration goal of expanding American nuclear energy capacity from the current 100 gigawatts (GW) to 400 GW by 2050.
According to the department, UPRISE “strives to significantly expand the United States’ nuclear energy capacity by increasing the power output of existing reactors, bringing dormant facilities back online, and completing stalled projects.”
This effort will include extending reactor lifespans through license renewals, boosting output via power uprates, restarting dormant facilities, and optimizing operating plant efficiency with modern technologies including advanced fuel technologies.
“This will be a resurgence for America’s nuclear fleet,” DOE Deputy Assistant Secretary Rian Bahran said.
The DOE’s Office of Energy Dominance (EDF) has more than $289 billion in available loan authority to help fund nuclear updates, the agency said.
In the near term, according to DOE, UPRISE will take a “three-pronged approach focused on establishing the business case by examining supply chain readiness, assessing plant equipment for increased power output or upgrades, and validating economic models to support project investment decisions.”
DOE’s EDF and Office of Nuclear Energy will hold match-making workshops to “facilitate collaborative agreements between nuclear power plant owners and end users,” the agency said.