Virginia at epicenter of nuclear renaissance
There is no mistaking it; the American nuclear renaissance is underway, and Virginia is at the epicenter of activity. Catherine Amos writes for the Danville Register & Bee about all the pieces that contribute to Virginia’s thriving nuclear industry and how they will make enormous contributions to economic development and energy independence.
The largest undeveloped uranium deposit in the United States is found in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. There is enough uranium at the Coles Hill deposit to fuel Virginia’s entire nuclear output for 65 years, or America’s for more than 2 years. As Patrick Wales, project manager for the Coles Hill operation, points out, the urgency of developing domestic uranium sources only heightens as America builds more nuclear reactors.
‘There’s a misconception that building our new nuclear plants will decrease our dependence on foreign energy sources,’ Wales said. ‘If we do build new plants, which I think everyone agrees is necessary, and do not develop our own resources, it will exacerbate our dependence on foreign fuel.
‘[Coles Hill is] the largest undeveloped deposit [of uranium] and certainly we can have a benefit to fueling our domestic nuclear facilities and actually help reduce that dependence on foreign uranium.’”
Experts predict that nuclear power in the United States will increase by at least 20% over the next two decades. America’s existing nuclear fleet consists of 104 reactors, and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is currently reviewing applications for 31 new reactors. If approved, one of those reactors would be built in Virginia at Dominion’s North Anna Power Station.
Virginia is also home to two of the world’s largest nuclear manufacturers and designers: Areva and Babock & Wilcox (BWX). Babcock & Wilcox’s new modular reactor design and Areva’s massive new components factory in Newport News have positioned these Virginia companies to lead the design and construction of America’s new fleet of nuclear reactors.
And, to make sure there is a market for Virginia’s nuclear fuel, services and products industries, Virginia’s Senator Jim Webb has proposed bold action by the government to encourage the expansion of nuclear energy across America.
[I]n November, Sen. Jim Webb co-sponsored bipartisan legislation with Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., to invest $20 billion over the next 10 to 20 years to expand nuclear energy and other clean energy technology in the United States — doubling domestic nuclear power by 2030 and extending the life of the current fleet of 104 nuclear reactors by 20 years.”
