US federal loan to jumpstart AP1000 reactor supply chain

The loans, through the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Energy Dominance Financing, advance last year's Executive Order on Reinvigorating the Nuclear Industrial Base by supporting the objective of having 10 new large nuclear reactors with complete designs under construction by 2030, the department said. 

Long-lead items are typically thought of as heavy forgings and castings for pressure vessels, steam turbines and generators. With a limited number of heavy engineering plants able to make to make such components, these - and other engineered components in the reactor supply chain, as well as items such as control software - often need to be ordered many years in advance of installation work.

Advance purchase of long-lead items is expected to accelerate project deployment timelines by up to three years and create significant supply chain efficiencies, Westinghouse said. 

The DOE financing will support up to five loans, each supporting two reactors at a project site. Westinghouse will partner with up to five eligible utilities and energy companies nationwide to procure the long-lead items at a fixed price. Each project will be jointly owned by Westinghouse and a utility or energy company partner, with both required to fully commit USD500 million of project equity - USD1 billion total per project - upfront prior to accessing DOE loan funds. Purchasing for each project will be staggered based on the timing of equity commitments and other relevant factors, DOE said.

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said: "These conditional loans will play an important role in reviving the supply chain needed for America to once again build large-scale commercial reactors. They will also help accelerate the timeline of building those large-scale reactors by up to three years, lowering construction costs and ensuring the United States is able to deliver on President Trump's bold and ambitious energy addition agenda."

Last year, the US government - through the Department of Commerce - announced a strategic partnership with Westinghouse's owners, Cameco Corporation and Brookfield Asset Management, centred on the construction of at least USD80 billion of new reactors across the USA using Westinghouse nuclear reactor technology.

"We are pleased to see the US government make this additional commitment to expanding nuclear power capacity using the proven AP1000 reactor technology," said Cameco CEO Tim Gitzel. "When combined with the 23 May, 2025 Executive Orders and other US government initiatives, we believe the right incentives are being created to advance the rapid deployment of AP1000 reactors in the US. The expansion of nuclear power in the United States is expected to create significant opportunities for Westinghouse and Cameco, accelerating growth in Westinghouse's energy systems segment during the procurement and subsequent construction phase."

Westinghouse has signed letters of intent with seven potential partners, each with identified project sites. The company, its owners, and its partners must satisfy certain technical, legal, environmental, and financial conditions before DOE enters into definitive financing documents and funds the loan.

Earlier this year, a study carried out by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC found that the construction phase of a 10-unit AP1000 fleet in the USA could generate more than USD92.8 billion of gross domestic product for the country and support 44,300 high-paying jobs annually for 13 years. Once operational, the 10-unit fleet would create an additional USD1.03 trillion of GDP over its 80-year lifetime while supporting 22,500 jobs annually.