New report calls for extending production tax credit for nuclear power plant construction

A new report calling for the support of the nuclear energy industry as a key objective for national security and to extend the production tax credit for new nuclear power plants before its Dec. 31, 2020, deadline was recently published by retired U.S. Navy Commander Kirk Lippold, former commanding officer of the USS Cole.

Should the credit be extended, it would ensure that two Westinghouse AP1000 reactors currently being installed at the Southern Company’s Vogtle nuclear site in Waynesboro, Georgia can benefit from the credit, even if other delays occur.

“Extending the tax credit’s deadline or crafting the legislation to provide an ongoing tax incentive for current and future construction projects would provide enough time to finish the new reactors,” Lippold said.

According to the Nuclear Energy Initiative’s (NEI) Vice President of Governmental Affairs Beverly Marshall, Russia and China are constructing 30 nuclear reactors domestically and have plans to build many more across the globe. If left unchallenged, Marshall said, it will put them in the position to develop future standards for nonproliferation and safety and project their influence.

The report also emphasizes how the United States’ foreign competitors have recently worked to gain market share in the commercial nuclear industry and global influence.

“…[A]s the U.S. slowly abdicated its leadership role over the past several years, nations whose national security interests run counter to, if not outright oppose, those of the U.S. have consequently filled the void,” the report said. “The clearest example of this has been Russia and China actively seeking to control 90% of global enrichment of uranium and becoming the leading vendors of nuclear technology around the world.”

While the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that effectively extends the tax credit in June, the Senate has yet to take action on the legislation.