Energy Department Announces Loan Guarantee Worth Billions For Nuclear Reactors

Two loans worth $8.3 billion and $6.5 billion

Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz on Wednesday announced the approval of a multibillion-dollar loan guarantee for the first nuclear reactors to be built in the U.S. in nearly 30 years. 

Southern Company, which received a conditional green light for an $8.3 billion loan guarantee in February 2010, will be getting $6.5 of that pot for two new reactors at its Vogtle plant in Waynesboro, Ga. 

During a luncheon at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., Moniz said the department will finalize the two loans on Thursday during his visit to Georgia. 

Moniz touted the new reactors as a commitment to the administration's "all of the above" energy strategy and carbon emissions goals. 

Comments

[Eric Bana]

That's awfully expensive. How is replacing coal and natural gas with nuclear a good idea? After all, going nuclear does NOTHING with replacing oil unless we all start driving electric cars.

[NotAnotherSkippy]

It displaces coal and gas which is the only criteria needed. Nukes are better than "green" projects, but that's not saying much.

It's a real shame that reactor technology has been so thoroughly fucked up by the government.

[Joao]

US gov is anti-nuke. Has stalled reactor development even tho there have been many new plant plans that are SOOO much better than previous.

All the greens see is a mushroom cloud.

[GamerFromJump]

Both France and the US Navy have been running nukes for decades with no problems. So has Japan, aside from Fukushima, which was a case of the scenario being worse than the worst scenario anyone imagined.

If we'd been developing utility nuclear technology for as long as the Navy's had it, electric cars might actually make sense.