Nuclear Energy
Constellation Energy is one of the premier owners and operators of nuclear power plants through its joint venture with EDF Group in Constellation Energy Nuclear Group, LLC. Based on four decades of operating nuclear facilities, Constellation Energy strongly advocates expansion of nuclear energy in the United States.
A Proven Source of Clean, Reliable Power
Nuclear energy is the only proven, reliable source of electricity that can generate the large amounts of electricity needed to power our cities and industries 24/7, without producing air pollution or greenhouse gases. President Obama, in his 2010 State of the Union Address, called for building a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants. Congressional representatives and leading research organizations have advocated the need to build at least 100 new base-load nuclear energy facilities as an essential part of a national strategy to improve energy security and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Heightened attention to the need for more substantial measures to improve air quality and public health is also contributing to the revival of interest in nuclear energy in this country, as regulators develop plans to achieve tighter restrictions on emissions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and mercury. Nuclear energy does not produce any of these emissions.
A Need for a National Nuclear Strategy
Congress has debated and considered a wide variety of approaches to improving energy security and cutting emissions. Energy bills in both 2005 and 2007, along with the federal stimulus in 2009, took significant steps forward with new mandates, incentives, and technology programs that will help reduce emissions in the near term.
Our nation needs energy legislation that sets out a long-term agenda and provides the foundation for a resurgent, economically viable nuclear energy industry in America. Such legislation requires a long-term goal for emissions reduction, a market-based program that promotes the most cost-effective approaches, and stronger policies to address major obstacles to financing, manufacturing, workforce issues, and improved spent fuel management.
Challenges to Nuclear Energy
Public support has been growing steadily over the last several decades in favor of construction of new nuclear power plants. However, as a result of the events at the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan following the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, early indications are that there may be a dampening of public support for nuclear construction until the full magnitude of events is better understood. This, combined with low natural gas prices in 2010 and the lack of an effective, long-term federal energy security and climate change policy, challenge the near-term economic viability of large capital investments such as new nuclear power plants. Over the longer term, however, projected increases in electricity demand, including the growing potential for electric power vehicles, and the strong safety record of the U.S. nuclear fleet make a compelling case to expand nuclear generation.