Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee lawmakers will question a Department of Energy official this week on progress toward meeting the ambitious nuclear goals set by President Donald Trump — and the unprecedented steps the agency may be taking to achieve them.
The hearing will focus on a package of nuclear-related executive orders Trump signed last May that call for sweeping changes to the nation’s nuclear regulatory framework and set aggressive deployment targets. Among them: expanding U.S. nuclear capacity from roughly 100 gigawatts now to about 400 GW by 2050.
Many industry observers say such deployment goals are unrealistic. But Energy Secretary Chris Wright has expressed confidence the U.S. can deliver as the White House looks to nuclear power to help meet surging electricity demand from artificial intelligence.
“The energy required to power this revolution is immense — and progress will be accelerated by rapidly unlocking and deploying commercial nuclear power,” Wright said in a speech last year.
