The US may finally, after years of trying, be on the cusp of a nuclear renaissance.

Commercial nuclear generation began in this country in 1958. Today, the US has 94 operating reactors, supplying roughly a fifth of the nation's electricity. But since 1996 only three new reactors have come online.

Now the picture is changing fast. In May 2025, President Trump signed four executive orders to speed up nuclear deployment; they include a goal to have ten new large reactors under construction by 2030. Nuclear startups have raised $4.6 billion this year alone. And with AI and data centers driving electricity demand growth, tech companies are signing long-term power agreements and backing the restart of shuttered reactors.

Still, caution is warranted. The delays and cost overruns at Georgia's Vogtle reactors remain a concern for some would-be investors. Advanced designs offer promise, but their ability to deliver power at competitive costs through repeated commercial deployment remains to be demonstrated.

At the center of this challenge is the Department of Energy's Office of Energy Dominance Financing, formerly the Loan Programs Office. In June, it issued a $17.5 billion conditional commitment to rebuild the nuclear supply chain and help launch ten large reactors. It is also financing three restarts, most recently with a $1.9 billion loan to NextEra for Iowa's Duane Arnold plant, the largest yet for reviving a nuclear plant. And just two weeks ago, it announced up to $4.2 billion to increase power generation from existing plants—so-called uprates—across Pennsylvania and Ohio.

So what will it really take to turn this momentum into new reactors, delivered on time and on budget? Why does nuclear need federal financing at all? And what role does nuclear play in the nation's economic, security, and decarbonization goals?

On today's episode, Jason Bordoff speaks with Julie Kozeracki, acting chief investment officer for the US Department of Energy's Office of Energy Dominance Financing and the office's nuclear sector lead.

Julie discusses the department's efforts to bolster US nuclear power capabilities, through both restarts and new builds. She explains how her office allocates resources toward commercializing new, more scalable nuclear systems. And she considers the roles that government and the private sector are each playing in this moment, and what policymakers can do to support a nuclear buildout.

Credits: Hosted by Jason Bordoff, Bill Loveless, and Daniel Sternoff. Produced by Mary Catherine O'Connor, Dara Diamond, and Kyu Lee. Engineering by Gregory Vilfranc.

DOE's Julie Kozeracki on the Federal Role in US Nuclear Financing

Columbia Energy Exchange

DOE's Julie Kozeracki on the Federal Role in US Nuclear Financing