Gov. Evers, please take note of these big
small modular nuclear reactor deals
Viewpoint by Mike Nichols
Google announced a big deal the other day to purchase energy in the next five to 10 years from a fleet of seven new small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) capable of powering artificial intelligence technology.
Right after that, Amazon announced new agreements that will help build four SMRs in the Pacific Northwest beginning in the early 2030s, and said it would explore an additional SMR in Virginia.
The deals with a variety of utilities and nuclear technology companies could easily add over 1,000 megawatts of power — enough to power a fairly large city or a couple of AI data centers.
These are monumental developments for the big tech and reactor companies. But they are also a big deal for Wisconsin, given our developing AI economy and Gov. Tony Evers’ 2022 Clean Energy Plan.
The Clean Energy Plan states that “it is possible that advanced nuclear technologies may become economically and environmentally viable. If this happens, Wisconsin must be able to take advantage of nuclear as a potential clean energy source.”
“Advanced nuclear” is often a way of referring to SMRs. Kairos, Google’s nuclear technology partner, is developing a molten-salt cooling system that is said to allow the reactor to operate at low pressure, enabling a simpler, more affordable, nuclear reactor design.
We’re still a number of years off from seeing a working small modular nuclear reactor in the United States. But it’s clear the smartest minds and more than one of the wealthiest companies on earth believe it’s more than possible and that we are close.
In Wisconsin, that means we could be on the cusp of one of those rare moments when Republicans and Democrats can agree on a viable solution to one of our most vexing problems — how to responsibly and reliably produce enough energy to help us prosper at a time when many politicians are trying to phase out coal and natural gas as energy sources. Nuclear can reliably and continuously provide power that other “clean” energy sources such as wind and solar cannot.
Then again, such agreement is unlikely to happen without a continued shift in public sentiment.
As commentator James Pethokoukis has written, “Societal license or societal consent is something the sector lost in the 1970s. In a democracy, nuclear energy needs it as much as it needs to meet regulatory standards and economic viability.”
“Bottom line,” he writes, “Nuclear technology back then and continuing through today seemed too costly and too scary to too many Americans — including those environmentalists who saw it as too enabling of techno-capitalism, safe or not. Building and maintaining societal consent will be crucial to keep the current nuclear moment going.”
Evers could help that by taking a fresh look at his Clean Energy Plan — and reminding everyone Wisconsin needs to put itself in a position to, as it said, “take advantage of nuclear.”
Mike Nichols is the President of the Badger Institute.
