Nation’s 54 reactors have maintained ‘consistently high annual capacity factors’
US utilities operated 94 nuclear reactors in 2024 with a total net generating capacity of nearly 97 GW, the largest commercial nuclear power generation fleet in the world, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) Said.
The federal agency said the next three countries with the largest programmes were France with 57 units (63 GW), China with 57 units (55.3 GW) and Russia with 36 units (28.6 GW).
Nuclear power continues to account for 19% of US power sector electricity generation, it said.
The US’s nuclear reactor fleet consists of 54 power plants, each of which has one to four operating units. The Vogtle nuclear power station in Georgia is the largest nuclear power station with four reactors and a total generating capacity of around 4.5 GW. Ginna in New York is the smallest nuclear power station with its single 0.6-GW reactor.
The two reactors at Vogtle and one reactor at Watts Bar in Tennessee are the only new nuclear reactors to come online in the United States since 1996. Vogtle-3 began commercial operation in July 2023, Vogtle-4 in April 2024 and Watts Bar-2 in October 2016.
The EIA said 12 US nuclear power reactors have permanently closed since 2013.
However, plant operators have maintained consistently high annual capacity factors, which measure how much time units are operating. US nuclear capacity factors have increased in part because of shorter refuelling and maintenance outages and improved operational experience.
The EIA said some newer policies aim to support continued operations at nuclear power plants.
In January 2024, the US Department of Energy (DOE) provided credits to support the continued operation of the Diablo Canyon power station in California. In 2024, the electricity produced at Diablo Canyon (2.2 GW) accounted for 9% of California’s total electricity generation.
More recently, the DOE approved a loan to support restarting the Palisades nuclear power plant in Michigan. If realised, the project would see Palisades become the first previously retired nuclear power plant in the US to return to operating status.
