First new US nuclear plant in decades starts operations as country reckons with technology

Construction of the second and third units of the plant began in 2009, which makes the former the first nuclear reactor built from scratch in this century. There is a reason for the “from scratch” qualifier. It is not the first new reactor in the last 23 years. That would be the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant in Tennessee, according to The Register. Unit 2 of Watts Bar began construction in 1972 but that was paused in 1985. Construction did not resume until 2007 and it wasn’t completed until nine years later.

The Vogtle plant was conceived in 2008, amidst a lot of interest in nuclear energy, according to Financial Times. It was supposed to be the first of many new reactors built across the country but the “nuclear renaissance” faltered due to safety concerns after the 2011 Fukushima disaster in Japan. Plunging natural gas prices also played a role in this because it is a competing fuel. This meant that eventually, work only continued on four reactors. Vogtle unit 3 will be followed by unit 4, which is expected to go online in early 2024.

AP reported in January that US states are looking to nuclear power to cut their use of fossil fuels. As states look to transition away from coal, oil and natural gas in efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, many are coming to the conclusion that solar, wind and other renewable power sources might not be enough.

The United States is the country with the most nuclear reactors, with 92 nuclear reactors, according to the US Department of Energy. But the average of these reactors is nearing 40 years, which will mean that a majority of them will reach the end of their lifespan in the 2030s.

Aside from deciding whether new nuclear reactors should be built, the country is facing another question—should those ageing reactors be retired or should they be reinforced and refurbished so they can continue producing power?

While refurbishing and renewing reactors is an expensive task by itself, the fact that plants like Vogtle face years of delays and ballooning costs mean that even commissioning new plants could be expensive.

The cost is just one problem with nuclear energy. It also comes with many other downsides like the radioactive waste that it produces, which can remain dangerous for thousands of years after nuclear plants are no longer functioning.

But if solar, wind and other renewable sources cannot keep up with the growing need for power, safely managed nuclear plants might be the country’s best gamble.

In a study published in the journal Nature in April this year, MIT researchers found that replacing the power from those aging 92 reactors with conventional energy sources like oil and gas could lead to an excess of 5,200 deaths in the country every year due to pollution.