Trump To Announce 17 5 Billion Loan Plan For Westinghouse Nuclear Reactors

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday will give another push to his nuclear- energy ambition for the United States, with the Wall Street Journal reporting that the POTUS will announce low-interest loans amounting to $17.5 billion for buying equipment for Westinghouse AP1000, a flagship nuclear reactor of the company Westinghouse.

The loans would be financed by the Energy Department for the Westinghouse AP1000---which has a version of it being produced by China at a rapid scale. The loans would be for 10 of these reactors, says a report by Investopedia citing the WSJ, and will be across five two-reactor projects. It comes as the US looks to bulk up its energy production with growing pressure on supplies as AI data centres spring up en-masse. As of now, the US only has 20% of their energy sourced from nuclear power.

Already, Seven utility companies have signed formal letters of intent to secure five loans, with Investopedia saying that the loans will fund early bulk purchases of specialized equipment to strengthen the supply chain. Westinghouse will be using a standardized design and fixed-price contracts to control equipment costs, as the projects go through a series of regulatory approvals. This is intended to have a different fate for the Westinghouse project than some of the earlier ones, like Georgia’s Vogtle plant: where costs more than doubled from $14 million to $30 million during the course of the project.

The loan makes the administration hopeful about speeding it up, as Trump administration claims it could speed up construction timelines by up to three years, with the new reactors expected to begin operations around 2035, as per Investopedia.

The total valuation of the project, which is a partnership between Westinghouse Electric Company, Cameco, and Brookfield Asset Management, is $80 billion, and aims to build around ten new reactors starting in 2026. The deal was announced in October last year, and the government will be getting 20% of cash distributions or profits that exceed the amount which the Energy department is subsidising i.e. $17.5 billion.

The reactors which will be built are Westinghouse’s AP1000 pressurized water reactors and AP300 small modular reactors, with the former already in use in Vogtle. The Vogtle power plant was the first show of intent by the US of its renewed nuclear energy ambitions, with the third and fourth reactors starting off the first new nuclear units after decades in 2023 and 2024.

Durva More is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times, where she covers finance, and global news. She brings experience across digital and television journalism, with a strong focus on breaking news, business reporting, and international affairs. Before joining Hindustan Times, Durva worked as an International News Writer at The Economic Times, covering a diverse range of subjects including global politics, business, sports, entertainment, and major world events. She also worked as a Business Reporter with NDTV Profit. A postgraduate diploma holder in Journalism from the Asian College of Journalism, Durva is passionate about field reporting and storytelling. She thrives on the adrenaline of chasing stories, speaking with people from different walks of life, and amplifying voices that deserve to be heard. Her reporting is driven by curiosity, accuracy, and a commitment to making complex subjects accessible to readers. When she is not chasing stories or covering breaking news, Durva enjoys reading books and painting. She loves exploring new ideas, meeting people, and learning about different perspectives. For her, both journalism and art are ways to understand the world and tell stories that matter.Read More