US utilities are building a substantial pipeline of new and expanded nuclear capacity, according to industry and federal data, as they respond to rising electricity demand. Operators have 23.4 gigawatts of new nuclear generation planned over the next 15 years, a figure that would meaningfully add to the roughly 97 gigawatts of capacity in the existing fleet.

Much of the near-term growth comes from extending and enhancing current plants. Utilities are pursuing license renewals at 20 plants, which allow reactors to operate beyond their original license terms, and power uprates at 29 units, which increase output from existing reactors. Together, these programs preserve and expand generation from assets that are already connected to the grid.

Reactor restarts add further capacity. The NRC cleared the return of Holtec's Palisades plant in Michigan, the first restart of a shuttered US reactor, with Constellation's Crane Clean Energy Center in Pennsylvania set to follow in 2027. In Georgia, a $26.5 billion federal loan package supports Southern Company uprates totaling 345 megawatts across six reactors at the Hatch, Vogtle, and Farley plants.

The combined pipeline of new build, renewals, uprates, and restarts marks a shift toward expansion after years of a stable fleet size. With 23.4 gigawatts planned and dozens of modernization projects underway, the data points to nuclear taking on a larger role in meeting load growth from data centers and broader electrification through the coming decade.

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration - https://www.eia.gov/nuclear/generation/