Nuclear energy plan aims to improve Texas grid

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) on Monday released a nuclear energy plan aimed at strengthening the state’s power grid.

The plan is laid out in the Texas Advanced Nuclear Reactor Working Group Report, which Abbott directed PUCT to create last year. The report outlines the use and benefits of advanced nuclear reactors (ANRs) in Texas.

The report lists five main benefits of nuclear power in the state:

1. Enhancing energy security by providing power for urban centers, ports, oil and gas regions, industrial facilities, data centers and military bases

2. Improving grid reliability through nuclear power, as opposed to coal, wind and solar power

3. Economic development and industry opportunities by adding jobs in the state

4. First-in-nation advantages by being “the first state with an efficient ANR strategy”

5. Global market potential by establishing the state as the preferred supplier for U.S.-based ANR technology

Abbott said that the nuclear energy plan would also provide more affordable power to Texans.

“Texas is the energy capital of the world, and we are ready to be No. 1 in advanced nuclear power,” Abbott said. “…I thank Public Utility Commissioner Jimmy Glotfelty and the members of the Texas Advanced Nuclear Reactor Working Group for working tirelessly to put Texas on the path to be the global leader in advanced nuclear power. As we build an advanced nuclear industry in our great state, we will ensure Texas remains a leader in energy and strengthen the Texas grid to meet the demands of our growing state.”

According to the report, these Texas regions would be likely candidates for ANR development:

• Coastal: Galveston, Port of Corpus Christi Authority, Beaumont, Houston Ship Channel

• Rio Grande Valley: Port of Brownsville

• Inland: Victoria, government/university lands, industrial complexes, the Houston area, the Permian Basin, non-ERCOT areas, Central Texas, the Metroplex

It also recommends creating a Texas Advanced Nuclear Energy Authority at an existing state agency to “to identify and study obstacles and opportunities and provide recommendations to future Legislatures to ensure Texas is the global leader in advance nuclear energy and technologies.”

Population growth in Texas continues to put immense strain on the state power grid, which has lead to historic blackouts during severe weather. Most notably, the major power crisis in February 2021 caused by the grid’s failure left over 4.5 million homes and businesses without power. Approximately 246 people died, most of them from hypothermia.