Financing New Nuclear Capacity: Will the 'Nuclear Renaissance' be a Self-Sustaining Reaction?
4 April 2007
By Dr. Glenn R. George
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005) is an important development in the financing of new nuclear capacity in the US, notes NERA Vice President Dr. Glenn R. George in this article from The Electricity Journal. However, in light of power market uncertainty, utility investor wariness, and the need to raise significant capital before a nuclear construction project can be launched, it remains unclear whether the incentives being offered by EPAct 2005 are sufficient to spur construction of significant new nuclear capacity beyond a small number of plants. Dr. George argues that without an aggressive, coordinated effort to resolve various economic and financial issues and to bring new financial tools and techniques to bear, financing for new nuclear capacity runs the risk of remaining uneconomic in the current environment.
