A member of the House Appropriation Committee from Tennessee and nuclear advocates took part in a think tank-sponsored webinar Thursday on the potential for developing advanced reactors in coal-heavy Appalachia.
The Atlantic Council’s Nuclear Energy Policy Initiative, which last month released a report dubbed “Atoms for Appalachia” after holding a series of workshops that explores the potential use of advanced nuclear energy.
The private workshops, in partnership with Breakthrough Energy Foundation, were held in North Carolina, Tennessee, Pennsylvania and West Virginia in 2024. The report, written by deputy director Lauren Hughes and released on Feb. 24, examines the economic opportunities and acknowledges the potential obstacles that come with first mover states that seek deploying advanced nuclear energy.
While the four states have varying policies regarding energy, the report said that the states were chosen due to their “storied legacies” in energy production and manufacturing from coal and natural gas.
Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn) spoke at the Atlantic Council’s March 20 webinar in favor of the initiative. He said the Appalachian area is in need of the opportunities that can come from transitioning to nuclear energy. Fleischmann chairs a House Appropriations subcommittee that helps control the purse strings from the Department of Energy.
Fleischmann also said that the United States has the facilities and funds to advance forward with deploying advanced nuclear energy.
“America and the world’s appetite for energy is going to boom, it’s inevitable,” Fleischmann said. “If we’re going to get there, then we’re going to need nuclear to be a part of that.”
Four panelists, one from each of the four states, later spoke about various concepts and plans their respective states are considering regarding nuclear energy.
E4 Carolinas president Ken Canavan said Duke Energy has submitted an early permit application for Belews Creek and expects to submit sometime this year.
Tennessee Office of Energy Programs director Molly Cripps said the state office has committed $500,000 over the next five years dedicated to community education and outreach. She said she hopes that the information they put together can be taken and customized so that other states can use it.
