Nuclear Tomorrow - June 2025
Nuclear Tomorrow - June 2025
Nuclear Tomorrow is a newsletter that is issued monthly to identify press reports on developments in the field of nuclear energy. Topics are selected for their relevance to
the impact of nuclear energy on global warming. The newsletter is written for members of the general public who are concerned with policy related to these issues. Postings are categorized as dealing with Technology (T), Policy (P), and/or Construction (C). In some cases registration or a fee is required to access an article. Hyperlinks are provided to connect newsletter posts to the referenced publication. (See hot buttons associated with each posting) The newsletter is intended to expand on topics included in the book, “Nuclear Energy: Boom, Bust, and Emerging Renaissance,” to be published in 2025 by Oxford University Press. The author of the book and of this newsletter is Edward A. Friedman, Emeritus Professor of Technology Management at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA. The book is available for pre publication purchase via the Oxford University Website. The following link is for the paperback edition. A hardcover edition and an onlinel version will be forthcoming.
https://global.oup.com/academic/product/nuclear-energy-9780198925781?lang=en&cc=gb#
The release dates for the book are July 21 for the online edition and August 21 for the print editions.
1.
Meta strikes power agreement with Constellation nuclear plant (P)
Meta, a leading technology company and one of the largest spenders on research and development, has entered into a 20 year agreement with Constellation for nuclear energy. Constellation, which is one of the largest energy producers in the United States, operates the Clinton Energy Center in Clinton, Illinois, which has an output of 1,080 Megawatts of electrical energy. The plant has a license through 2027, and is awaiting approval of an extension through 2047 to support this contract with Meta. This initiative illustrates the growing demand for energy needed in support of Artificial Intelligence processing.
2.
KHNP sets out plans for USD 18.6bn Czech nuclear project (P)
Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) has signed a contract to build two APR reactors in the Czech Republic. This deal had been held up by a legal challenge from EDF of France who had also bid for this contract. The path foard was cleared by the Czech supreme court which annulled a lower court ruling that had blocked the relationship with KHNP. Construction is planned to begin in 2029.
3.
Russia to build 8 nuclear power plants in Iran ( C )
Russia will build eight nuclear power plants in Iran, four of which will be located in Bushehr, Southern Iran. Currently there is one nuclear power plant operating in Iran at Bushehr and another is under construction. These are also Russia designed reactors.
4.
British Government to Spend $19 Billion on New Nuclear Plant ( C )
The British government plans to spend as much as $19 billion on constructing a new nuclear plant called Sizewell C on the east coast of England. The plant will be built by EDF, the French state-owned energy group. In 2024, nuclear energy accounted for 14 percent of Britain’s electrical energy supply. The British government also announced that it will spend $3.4 billion for small modular reactors to be built by Rolls-Royce.
5.
Amazon to spend $20B on data centers in Pennsylvania including one next to a nuclear power plant ( C )
Amazon plans to build two data centers in Pennsylvania with an expenditure of approximately $20 billion. One center will be alongside the Susquehanna nuclear power plant. Governor Josh Shapiro called this the largest capital investment in Pennsylvania’s history. The expansion of cloud computing and AI has fueled significant demand for data centers and the power requirements for servers. In 2024 Amazon committed about $10 billion apiece to data centers in Mississippi, Indiana, Ohio and North Carolina. Connecting the data center directly to a power plant eliminates the need for developing a grid to do so. This plan awaits approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
6.
Can nuclear power really fuel the rise of AI? (P)
The prior posting on the nuclear initiatives by Amazon and the first posting reporting on that of Meta are among the many investments that AI companies are making in nuclear energy. This article in MIT Technology Review examines plans by Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and Google to pursue nuclear energy. It points out the problem faced by plans for new construction that might have time tables for available power that will not be in sync with the needs of these corporations. This supports the judgement of Microsoft to seek the restart of the plant at Three Mile Island and the initiative of Meta to plan to acquire energy from an existing plant in Pennsylvania.
7.
World Bank to end ban on nuclear energy projects, still debating upstream gas (P)
In 2013 the World Bank adopted a policy of not funding nuclear energy projects. This stance was overturned in board action in June 2025. The Bank’s President noted that electricity demand would more than double by 2035 and that nuclear power will be a necessary component of the mix of sources that would be required to meet that demand. It was reported that 28 countries currently use nuclear power, with 10 more ready to start and another 10 potentially ready by 2030. The Bank plans to help extend the life of existing nuclear plants along with grid upgrades as well as work to accelerate the potential of small modular reactors.
8.
Next-gen small nuclear reactor delivering 1,832 deg F heat headed to US test site ( C )
The Utah San Rafael Energy Research Center (USREL) in Orangeville, Utah will work with NuCube technology to implement an innovative design which they claim can produce heat in excess of 1,832 deg F (1000 deg C).
9.
Kazakhstan selects Rosatom for first nuclear power plant
( C )
The government of Kazakhstan has selected Russia’s Rosatom to provide its first nuclear power plant. Rosatom won in a competition with submissions from China and Korea for reactors of similar design with the VVER-1200 proposed by Rosatom. This reactor is a Generation III+ design that incorporates both active and passive safety features. It boasts 1200 Megawatts of electrical power output with similar four units operating in Russia and two units operating in Belarus. It has also been selected for construction in Hungary, Egypt, Turkey, Bangladesh and China.
10.
Rolls-Royce wins UK small nuclear reactor deal ( C )
As part of the UK’s program to actively pursue nuclear energy development it selected Rolls-Royce as the contractor for its first generation IV small nuclear reactor. This $3.4 billion program is part of its goal of decarbonization. Rolls-Royce was selected in a competition that included Westinghouse, Holtec Britain and GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy. Small Modular Nuclear Reactors (SMRs) are designed to have an energy output of less than 300 Megawatts and to incorporate passive safety features. Their potential fabrication at a central site prior to being transported to an operational location holds the promise of significant cost reduction compared with historic nuclear reactor construction combined with shorter times for completion. With a growing world wide market for SMRs the UK hopes Rolls-Royce will develop as a vibrant exporter of this technology.
11.
New York Again Embraces Nuclear Power With Plans to Build New Plant ( C )
The Governor of New York announced on June 23rd that the state will build a nuclear power plant that will generate approximately 1000 Megawatts of electrical energy at an upstate location. There are no details available about the design or the specific location. The Governor stated, “This is not your grandparents’ nuclear reactor. You’re not going to see this in a movie starring Jane Fonda,” she said, referring to the 1979 film “China Syndrome” that was released just prior to the accident at Three Mile Island. Plans for development of a computer chip manufacturing factory near Syracuse have contributed to this push for additional clean energy in New York State.
12.
Palantir and the New Nuclear Company Partner to Launch Platform to Rapidly Scale Nuclear Deployment (T)
Palantir Technologies, the world’s leading provider of enterprise operating systems, announced on June 26, 2025 a strategic partnership with The Nuclear Company, a leading nuclear energy development and deployment company. The objective is to streamline construction of nuclear reactors using Artificial Intelligence software to facilitate scheduling, supply chain management, problem identification and prevention and adherence to regulatory requirements. The goal of this alliance is to eliminate the delays that have impeded reactor fabrication in the U.S. in recent years. Under this deal The Nuclear Company will pay Palantir roughly $100 million to co-develop an AI driven Nuclear Operating System (NOS).
13.
World Bank and IAEA join forces to boost nuclear power in developing countries (P)
The World Bank and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have entered into an agreement to bring nuclear power to the forefront of clean energy solutions for developing nations. There are more than thirty countries seeking to industrialise and to bring their population out of poverty. This need to expand healthcare, education, manufacturing and digital infrastructure requires reliable energy that is affordable. The World Bank is embarking on promotion of nuclear energy to meet these needs in a manner that is environmentally responsible. The IAEA will support the Bank in expanding the knowledge base required for development, in encouraging the extended lifespan of existing reactors and in the development of small modular reactors.
14.
ABS approves second Korean floating SMR plant design ( C )
The American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has issued approval (June 25, 2025) in principle to HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering for a concept of a floating small modular reactor intended to generate electricity offshore that would support port facilities and onshore communities. This adds to prior approvals obtained by this company for other offshore nuclear power initiatives, including a power barge and a container ship holding a small modular reactor. ABS envisions floating nuclear power facilities eventually supporting power grids, industrial and port operations as well as data centers.
15.
CATF Statement: Dismissal of NRC commissioner undermines nuclear deployment and oversight (P)
On June 16, 2025, President Trump abruptly fired U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commissioner Chris Hanson without cause. The NRC is the independent federal agency responsible for regulating the safe use of nuclear materials in civilian applications, including the operation of the nation’s nuclear power plants. “This unprecedented move threatens the NRC’s independence and could erode public trust in the safety of nuclear energy, limiting the U.S.’s ability to deploy new nuclear reactors at scale,” said Clean Air Task Force Executive Director, Armond Cohen.
APPENDIX - Nuclear Weapons Production
Given the extraordinary attention addressed to the June bombing of nuclear weapons facilities in Iran, the author of this newsletter (which is devoted to nuclear energy) is adding an Appendix on Nuclear Weapons Production to this issue of Nuclear Tomorrow. The focus of this Appendix addresses detonation of a nuclear explosion by terrorists or clandestine state sponsored actors.
The author believes that there is a need to elucidate the nature of nuclear weapons and the ease with which a devastating explosive could be fabricated.
Clear explanations along these lines can be found in books dealing with nuclear terrorism. Two outstanding examples of such
books are: “The Curve of Binding Energy” (1973) by John McFee and “Nuclear Terrorism: The Ultimate Preventable Catastrophe” (2004) by Graham Allison.
An in-depth discussion of this topic can be found, that was prepared by the author of this newsletter, in a review of the book “The Right of Boom” (2015) that was published on the website of the Federation of American Scientists. A link to that review is here:
Federation of American Scientists
Since that review was prepared in 2015 it is worth noting that in 2023 the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists published an analysis of Pakistan’s program to produce weapons grade Uranium 235 and concluded that it is reasonable to conclude that Pakistan could fabricate at least several Hiroshima sized weapons each year.
https://thebulletin.org/premium/2023-09/pakistan-nuclear-weapons-2023/
This is noteworthy given reports that the security surrounding this weapons grade uranium production in Pakistan is porus and a source of fissile material that has probably been available for acquisition by Iran in past years.
It should be noted that 100 pounds of Uranium 235, which can fit into a soccer ball sized container, can produce an explosion equivalent to 10 kilotons of TNT. In comparison, the Hiroshima bomb yield was equivalent to 15 kilotons of TNT.
A 10 kiloton TNT equivalent explosion at ground level in a major U.S. city such as New York, Chicago or Los Angeles would
cause the deaths of more than 100,000 people. See Nukemap reference by Alex Wellerstein https://nuclearsecrecy.com/nukemap/
for this estimate.
Enough U-235 for fabrication of several bombs could have been acquired by Iran during the early 1990’s breakup of the USSR or secretly through the use of hidden centrifuges.
It should also be noted that Marco Rubio and others have claimed that the ability of Iran to transform enriched Uranium hexafluoride gas into metal for bomb fabrication was destroyed. However, that process can be successfully implemented in a makeshift laboratory using readily available equipment and chemicals. The process is described on page 133 of “The Curve of Binding Energy” by John McFee.
Enough nuclear material to cause severe disruption of American society can be smuggled into the country via a yacht and detonated in a truck in one or more cities. This act could be
facilitated in a laboratory using readily available chemicals and components. This could be done by terrorists or agents of a hostile country such as Iran or North Korea.
The Federation of American Science review that is cited above discusses efforts during the Obama administration to defend against nuclear terrorist activities. The current focus on the Iranian efforts to produce enriched uranium overlooks the possible harm that comes from simpler methods of production.
Determined agents, using relatively simple fabrication methods, have greater access to bomb grade Uranium - 235 than is generally appreciated. Furthermore, opportunities to deliversuch a weapon to a vulnerable target is easier to implement than is supposed. This avenue to nuclear danger deserves far more attention than it currently receives.
This is great information, subscribed! I’m particularly excited by the new fission deal with Google!
Always very informative
Gary