On Monday, at a conference hosted by the American Nuclear Society in Washington, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright declared that as the Trump administration accelerates the construction of new reactors, nuclear energy initiatives are set to receive robust financial backing from the Department of Energy's Loan Programs Office. He highlighted that the Loan Programs Office possesses substantial lending capacity, with the current primary focus on funding the construction of the inaugural batch of nuclear power plants.

Wright emphasized that the resurgence of nuclear energy is largely driven by the skyrocketing electricity demand, fueled by the nationwide construction of hundreds of AI data centers by major tech firms and the revival of manufacturing. International rating agency DBRS Morningstar forecasts that electricity infrastructure investment will soar to $1.4 trillion from 2025 to 2030, doubling the investment seen in the previous decade.

In May of this year, President Trump signed a series of executive orders aimed at tripling nuclear power generation within the next 25 years. Meanwhile, tech behemoths like Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft are investing billions to revive old nuclear power plants, upgrade existing facilities, and deploy cutting-edge reactor technologies to cater to the electricity needs of AI data centers.

Furthermore, the U.S. government has inked a cooperation agreement with Westinghouse Electric to strategize the construction of nuclear reactor projects valued at a minimum of $80 billion. The AP1000 modern reactor, designed by Westinghouse Electric, is capable of supplying electricity to over 750,000 households. The company's CEO has affirmed their commitment to responding to Trump's call to construct large-scale new power plants.

Wright anticipates that AI's voracious appetite for electricity will draw in billions of dollars in equity capital. He noted that the Department of Energy can complement private investments by offering low-cost debt financing through the Loan Programs Office, with a matching ratio of up to four to one. Wright expressed his hope that, upon his departure in three years and three months, he will witness the construction of dozens of nuclear power plants in full swing.