Nuclear energy is known to be one of the largest available forms of energy in the United States, and after a period of relatively stagnated growth in infrastructure, the industry seems to have arrived at a pivotal moment in its development as an energy source. With a growing emphasis on and improving perception of nuclear power, heartland states hold unique opportunities to capitalize on potential growth sourced from the expansion of nuclear infrastructure. 

Know Your Terms:

• A nuclear reactor is the electricity-generating unit that controls the chain reaction begun by nuclear fission. 
• A nuclear power plant is a power station that houses one or more nuclear reactors to generate electricity. 
• Net summer capacity is the maximum output, commonly expressed in megawatts (MW), that generating equipment can supply to the system load, as demonstrated by a multi-hour test, at the time of summer peak demand

Re-Charge on the Background

The United States’ nuclear power plants began producing electricity in 1958, and for the latter half of the 20th century, electrical capacity and the electricity generated by nuclear power plants increased at a steady rate. While the rate of increase flattened out around the turn of the century, nuclear power contributed nearly 20% of the total annual electricity used in the United States between 1990 and 2021. Diminished from the peak number of 112 nuclear reactors in 1990, the United States currently houses 93 commercial reactors along with 54 total power plants across 28 states as of 2024. 

The Core of Nuclear Power in the Heartland

Nearly half of the United States’ nuclear reactors are located in the heartland, including the country’s largest, the Grand Gulf Nuclear Station in Port Gibson, Mississippi. Illinois leads the country in number of reactors (11) and, as of 2022, total nuclear net summer capacity (11,582 MW). Alabama, Texas and Michigan join Illinois as heartland leaders in total nuclear infrastructure (determined by number of reactors) and policy, and diving into these heartland leaders paints a proper picture of the nuclear status quo in the region. 

• Illinois: Illinois is the national leader in reactors and net summer output. Nuclear energy has risen to comprise 54% of the state’s energy use, with no apparent plan to slow down. In 2021, Illinois became the first Midwest state to pass legislation establishing a carbon-free electricity goal. Since Governor Pritzker signed the bill, the legislature has taken steps to build bipartisan momentum for larger nuclear projects to expand their already-strong industry.
• Alabama: With five plants in the state, Alabama relies on nuclear energy for nearly 33% of its total energy usage and over 80% of its clean energy usage. In recent years, Alabama lawmakers and industry leaders have pushed nuclear power forward with plans to build new reactors, and while its largest project, a micro-modular reactor in Gadsden, has briefly paused construction, the plant could innovate the state’s industry by producing energy suitable for any climate without requiring water.
• Texas: The largest heartland state and a famed oil producer, Texas is also a growing nuclear stronghold for the region and the country. Looking strictly at the numbers, four nuclear reactors in a state the size of Texas does not seem like much, but recent policies tell a different story. Texas state lawmakers recently advanced the Texas Nuclear Deployment Act, which would establish the Texas Advanced Nuclear Energy Office within the executive branch. 
• Michigan: Michigan’s three nuclear reactors comprise nearly 23% of the state’s energy usage, but Michigan presents itself as a leader in nuclear energy for its strategic resilience. Michigan will be home to the United States’ first-ever reopened nuclear power plant. Having ceased operations in 2022, Palisades Nuclear Plant is set to reopen, adding to Michigan’s nuclear energy supply, pending approval by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Surging Support for Nuclear Energy

Expansion of nuclear power presents significant environmental, security and economic benefits and challenges. As the United States’ largest source of minimal-emission energy, nuclear energy replaces over 471 million metric tons of carbon emissions per year. For context, that is the equivalent of taking 100 million gas-fueled cars off the road. 

Economically, nuclear power plants generate more than just ample energy, they have also shown to generate thousands of jobs. The construction of the plants alone creates over 9,000 jobs for the local economies during peak construction, and each nuclear plant requires 500 to 800 workers to operate on a day-to-day basis. Also reported, for every 10 jobs created at nuclear plants, 25 jobs are created in the United States to support their operation. And the best part? Nuclear jobs have been shown to pay 50% higher wages than positions at other energy-generating sources, contributing to the $11 billion spent on nuclear labor annually ($100 million per reactor per year). 

Some share that nuclear power also brings potential downsides. Due to its perceived danger, high construction and operational costs and complications surrounding the disposal of used fuel and waste, the public has held skepticism of nuclear power as a viable energy option–but that might be changing. According to Pew Research Center, the majority of Americans support an expansion of the United States’ use of nuclear power. The figure (56%) has risen 13 percentage points since 2020, representing more rapid growth in favorability than other sources of clean energy, such as solar and wind power.   

The public is not alone in its rising support of nuclear energy. The Trump administration has made the expansion of nuclear energy a priority to compete with China. While various economic policies may have stalled the growth and construction of plants, industry leaders point to members of the administration and the desire to compete with global opponents as factors leading to a “nuclear renaissance”.

What Does This Mean for the Future of the Region? 

The US Nuclear Industry Council reported in February of 2024 that the nuclear industry was responsible for over $42 billion in the Southeast US–a region with a comparable number of nuclear power plants to the heartland. There’s reason to believe that the heartland matches (or even exceeds) that economic generation due to similar infrastructure and has room to grow its network of nuclear power plants. 

As of now, most of the United States’ nuclear plants are located east of the Mississippi River. That being said, nuclear plants are best situated in areas with access to large bodies of water and relatively low population densities, but still within proximity of the population centers that they power. And while half of the heartland does lay west of the river, the mix of open areas and population centers scattered around the Mississippi River and its tributaries (that extend to touch each heartland state) makes the heartland a compelling location for the future expansion of nuclear infrastructure. Toss in the Great Lakes and other major river systems and the opportunity becomes even clearer. 

The current presidential administration has kick-started a nuclear-powered train of infrastructural expansion with its demonstrated support for the industry. Now it’s up to heartland states to decide if they want to hop on and expand their foothold near the top of the nuclear power industry.