Electricity demand in the U.S. is expected to surge in coming years. The need for more electricity is due in part to data centers that power artificial intelligence — there are over 4,000 active data centers across the U.S., with about 2,800 more planned or already under construction. That would be a 67% increase from 2025, according to the American Edge Project.
Nuclear energy may be poised to fill the gap. The U.S. Department of Energy calls it the largest source of clean power in the country, producing 775 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually without emitting greenhouse gases, and in North Carolina, Duke Energy recently sought approval in Stokes County for new nuclear reactors. The state that has not opened a new nuclear reactor since the 1980s.
But nuclear energy has a checkered past in the South. Utility companies in South Carolina dumped $9 billion into a nuclear project there before it was canceled in 2017, leaving customers on the hook to cover the costs even though the units haven’t been in operation. In Georgia, a nuclear plant went live seven years behind schedule and $17 billion over budget in 2023.
Meltdowns and disasters at nuclear sites such as Three Mile Island, Fukushima and Chernobyl also loom large for those opposed to the energy source.
On this Charlotte Talks, we discuss the future of nuclear power in North Carolina.
GUESTS:
Matt Wald, analyst at the Breakthrough Institute and former energy, technology and environment reporter for the New York Times
Sue Sturgis, research and communications manager for the Energy and Policy Institute, focusing on electric utilities in the Southeast
Tom Cinq-Mars, lecturing fellow and associate director for Education & Experiential Learning at Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment and Sustainability
NOTE: Duke Energy was offered a spot on this panel, but did not take WFAE up on its offer as of the time of this publication.
