This article is adapted from an article by Michael Robinson. He has spent more than four decades as an investigative journalist uncovering the story behind massive tech trends.
A massive energy crisis is here … and it’s all because of artificial intelligence. It is one of the reasons why solar and wind (intermittent renewables) are not adequate for maintaining supply. Nuclear is considered the best option to stabilise the energy mix.
On average, just one new AI data center currently requires the same amount of electricity as 750,000 homes. That’s more than the population of cities like Seattle, Detroit, and Denver.
Nearly 3,000 more of them are on the way. No wonder Tirias Research forecasts that, by 2028, data center power consumption will be 212 times what it was in 2023.
This boom in AI data centers will push America’s power grid to the brink. According to the New York Times, the world is “poised to add the equivalent of Japan’s annual electricity demand to grids each year” over the next decade.
It could bring AI screeching to a halt … Let alone affect regular people as utility bills skyrocket — even as they face planned blackouts to conserve energy … and prolonged outages because of creaky infrastructure.
Fortunately, Meta announced yesterday a request for proposals from nuclear power developers who would help the company add 1 to 4 gigawatts of electricity generating capacity in the U.S. According to Axios, Meta is willing to share costs early in the cycle and will commit to buying power once the reactors are up and running.
The hitch? Applicants have to move fast. Initial proposals are due February 7, 2025, and Meta wants the power plants to begin operation in the early 2030s.
Microsoft has signed a deal with one of the most infamous nuclear power facilities in the US as it looks for more ways to ensure the demand for AI computing is met.
The legacy of the Three Mile Island (TMI) nuclear plant has long been shaped by the 1979 Unit 2 meltdown, which had a profound effect on public perceptions of nuclear energy. What a lot of people don’t know is that Unit 1 was not only unaffected, but continued to operate safely and reliably for decades.
Now, in a major new step, Constellation has signed its largest power purchase agreement with Microsoft, leading to the planned restoration and restart of TMI Unit 1 under the name Crane Clean Energy Center (CCEC). The project is expected to bring 835 megawatts of carbon-free power to the grid, create 3,400 jobs, and contribute over $3 billion in taxes.
Considering this move in the USA it will be interesting to learn how Microsoft plans to power their new data centers in Australia.
Microsoft will invest A$5 billion ($3.2 billion) in Australia to expand its cloud computing and AI infrastructure over the next two years, in what the US company described as its largest investment in the country in four decades. Announced as part of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s visit to the US this week, the investment will help Microsoft grow its data centers across Canberra, Sydney, and Melbourne by 45% – from 20 sites up to 29.
The following video shows that power constraints are the major problem facing Data Centre growth.
Trump started bringing production back to the USA during his first term. It has only accelerated in large part due to AI and Robotics and Trump’s efforts to make the USA energy independent by opening up fracking. Biden’s term has not helped but Trump will quickly resolve the energy supply problem.
The demands for new energy production are driven primarily by two massive trends that will certainly accelerate in the next four years.
There is a need for new AI factories – massive data centers – some of which will be on a gigawatt scale. It’s hard to imagine a data center facility that requires that much power, but that’s what is required to build artificial general intelligence (AGI), and it will be required to run thousands of AI applications. The capital expenditures for AI for Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet, Oracle, Meta, and Apple for 2025 will be around $200 billion. That’s just six companies in one year.
This is a multitrillion-dollar trend that will unfold over the next decade. It’s unstoppable. And it needs gigawatts of electricity to fuel these technological advancements.
The second major trend is something I’ve referred to as The Great Recalibration. It’s a massive reversal of the multi-decade trend to move manufacturing offshore, primarily to Asia.
Economic policies that began in 2017 were a turning point for bringing manufacturing back onshore. The tide is coming back in and manufacturing in-country has become deeply popular again. And for good reason:
It creates jobs and opportunity
It improves supply chain security
It reduces overall CO₂ emissions by manufacturing close to end markets (i.e. less transportation and logistics are required)
These economic policies take a few years to kick in, and they tend to span administrations. It’s easy to see the impact in the chart below. Total manufacturing construction spending has more than tripled since January 2020.
Source: BlackRock
By May of this year, manufacturing construction spending has increased to around $234 billion annually. This isn’t a trend that will slow down. And the supply chain problems caused by the pandemic policies only accelerated this recalibration.
This recalibration wouldn’t be possible, however, without today’s advanced technology.
Robotics, artificial intelligence, and process automation are driving manufacturing costs down to levels that are near what can be produced in China, without the supply chain or intellectual property risks.
And of course, all of these new manufacturing plants, whether they be for cars, semiconductors, or bicycles, will require gigawatts of electricity to run. Preferably, carbon emission-free energy.
And that’s why the politics have shifted. Technology can and will save the day. That’s why energy policy and regulations are so critically important. Investment follows when there are reasonable regulations that provide a clear path toward commercialization in a short period. This has long been the issue with nuclear power regulations.
A New Energy Framework
Earlier this year, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) gave Holtec International approval for a $1.52 billion loan guarantee to bring 800 megawatts of nuclear power back online by restarting the Palisades nuclear power plant in southwest Michigan. At the same time, the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant in California received $1.1 billion from the program to enable its two nuclear reactors to stay in operation.
Based on the DOE’s estimates of needing an additional 200 gigawatts of new nuclear power in the next 25 years, the U.S. government just announced yesterday a new nuclear energy framework to bring online “200 GW of net new nuclear energy capacity by 2050.”
Bring online 35 gigawatts (GW) of new nuclear capacity by 2035
Ramp up to bringing on line 15 GW of new nuclear capacity by 2040
To put things in perspective, 1 GW of electricity is about half the output of the Hoover Dam. It’s enough to power roughly 750,000-850,000 homes. This new framework has a target of 200 GW, enough to power up to 170,000,000 homes with carbon emission-free electricity. But the increase in nuclear power production isn’t for homes, it’s for the new Data Centres needed for the AI revolution and manufacturing and infrastructure construction
With Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk now officially assigned to head up the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), we can expect rapid progress on this front. Both are intelligent, evidence-based, and common-sense thinkers now charged with the mandate to reduce government waste, “slash excess regulations,” and bring an entrepreneurial approach to government.
Having built the most successful clean energy company in history, I know this will be a major focus for Musk. He deeply understands that fueling Tesla electric vehicles with electricity produced from coal, natural gas, and oil makes no sense at all.
With nuclear power, the dream of carbon emission-free ground transportation is possible.
Better yet, DOGE has already been given a deadline for its mission. The team is to conclude its work no later than July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary of The Declaration of Independence.
My prediction – DOGE is going to hit the ground running in January and aggressively get things done. We’re in for some remarkable developments. And cheap, limitless, clean energy is the path to abundance.
The Australian Labour Party needs to realise that its current renewable energy policy will not be adequate and cost-effective for industry to be competitive. We need to bring more natural gas online and upgrade and maintain our coal-fired power stations until we can introduce the best nuclear options for each State. High-efficiency low-emissions (HELE) coal-fired power stations are proven to reduce both emissions and fuel costs by maximising the amount of power from the steam produced.
UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband and US Deputy Secretary of Energy David Turk agreed to a plan to “help pool together billions of pounds worth of nuclear research and development – including the world’s leading academic institutions and nuclear innovators”.
The decision is an extension of the pro-nuclear agreement signed by 31 nations last year at COP28 to triple nuclear energy capacity globally by 2050 and aims to have new technology available by 2030.
This may be enough to give Dutton and the Liberal Party a chance to win the next election.
The thought of powering our cars, trucks, trains, and even planes with the most abundant element in the universe, whose byproduct is just water, sounds like the solution to greatly reducing global carbon emissions. Hydrogen seems perfect on the surface. It stores three times as much energy per unit of mass as gasoline. When it is combined with air, the energy released can power a vehicle, and it combines with oxygen to produce water.
Hydrogen is produced from water. About 70 million tons of hydrogen are produced each year, primarily used for ammonia fertilizer. And 96% of hydrogen production is made by a process known as steam-methane reformation. This process uses energy created by natural gas, coal, and oil to produce hydrogen. The industry produces 830 million metric tons of carbon dioxide yearly to produce this “clean” hydrogen fuel.
If we have to burn massive amounts of carbon-based fuel to put hydrogen in our cars, we aren’t helping the environment. We are only displacing where the carbon emissions take place, not whether or not they happen in the first place.
It is no different than fueling our electric vehicles with electricity produced from coal, natural gas, or oil. It is nonsensical to think that we are helping the environment.
Currently, 4% of hydrogen production is produced using electrolysis which uses electricity to split the hydrogen out of the water. However, the costs are four times higher than steam-methane reformation. To put things in perspective, it takes about 50–55 kilowatt hours of electricity to produce a single kilogram of hydrogen fuel. That’s the equivalent of about two days of electricity consumption for an average home in America. Two days of an entire household’s energy consumption just to produce one kilogram that provides enough fuel to travel 70 miles. Also, its volume is a problem It takes up a lot of space, so we can only carry about 5–6 kilograms of hydrogen in our tank. The other tricky nuance is that hydrogen molecules are so tiny, that they easily leak out of most containers.
Without billions of dollars in subsidies, hydrogen just doesn’t make economic sense; and because of where the energy comes from in the production of hydrogen – mainly fossil fuels – it doesn’t even make environmental sense.
For hydrogen fuel cells to be both environmentally sustainable and economical, the world must address how it produces baseload power. This is the kind of power required to manufacture the 70 million tons of hydrogen produced every year.
The most desirable technology to achieve this is nuclear fusion technology but it is still a long way off. Nuclear fusion is the same process that powers the sun and other stars and is widely seen as the holy grail of clean energy. Experts have worked for decades to master the highly complex process on Earth, and if they do, fusion could generate enormous amounts of energy with tiny inputs of fuel and emit zero planet-warming carbon in the process. In the meantime, nuclear fission providing carbon-free emissions with limited radioactive waste is a sustainable energy production strategy and one we should all be using. Both Small Modular Nuclear Reactors and Large-Scale Reactors are the way forward and progressive countries are already pursuing that strategy.
There are already SMRs deployed and operating in China and Russia, as well as one test reactor in Japan. Other first-of-a-kind SMRs are expected to be built this decade, followed by accelerated deployment worldwide during the 2030s, particularly as a source of reliable, low-carbon power generation and heat for hard-to-abate sectors. This includes notably the use of SMRs for on-grid baseload power to replace coal-fired generation, though market demand for SMRs continues to grow for other applications as well. The most promising include off-grid heat and power to replace diesel generators in remote regions for mining operations, fossil-fuel replacement for district heating, and high-temperature heat to replace fossil-fuel cogeneration in heavy industries. Other applications include replacing fossil fuels in cogeneration for ammonia and potash production for the fertiliser industry; hydrogen production for synthetic fuels and clean steel production; as well as marine propulsion to replace heavy-fuel oil for merchant shipping.
SMRs are driving innovation in the nuclear sector The sector is witnessing significant innovation internationally. This includes SMRs at various stages of development, from fundamental research on new concepts to commercial deployment and operation. The innovation pipeline includes a range of reactor concepts – from incremental innovation in existing light water reactor technologies to breakthroughs in advanced Generation IV reactor concepts. It also includes SMRs in a variety of configurations – with land-based, multi-module, marine-based and transportable designs. These innovations incorporate new materials, a range of coolants, and, in some cases, innovative fuels. This is in turn expected to lead to the deployment of a range of SMRs of different sizes, with a range of outlet temperatures, and new attributes.
Nuclear energy supplies approximately 10% of the world’s electricity from 412 nuclear power reactors in operation, providing 370 gigawatts of capacity. It is the largest source of non-emitting electricity generation in OECD countries and the second largest source worldwide after hydropower.
The role of nuclear energy in meeting these pathways was emphasized at the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) in Dubai on 2 December 2013 when the leaders of over 20 countries committed to tripling global installed nuclear capacity by 2050, recognizing the critical role of nuclear energy in achieving global net zero greenhouse gas emissions and keeping within reach the goal of limiting the temperature rise to 1.5°C.
This commitment builds on NEA analysis that concluded in 2022 that to meet climate goals consistent with a 1.5°C scenario, global installed nuclear capacity needs to triple to 1 160 gigawatts by 2050 (NEA, 2022).
Rolls-Royce SMR was successful in the Swedish nuclear selection process 12th June 2024. It has won a place on Vattenfall’s shortlist of just two SMR companies competing to potentially deploy a fleet of small modular reactors (SMRs) in Sweden.
Vattenfall, the Swedish multinational power company, has announced the shortlist of two SMR vendors as part of its plans to meet the rising electricity demand, adding nuclear capacity and helping Sweden achieve its goal of creating a fossil-free economy by 2045. The other successful SMR wasGE Hitachi’s BWRX-300.
This selection follows a thorough assessment process in which Rolls-Royce SMR had the opportunity to present a fundamentally different approach to building nuclear projects and a modularisation strategy focused on risk reduction to Vattenfall, an experienced and technically respected energy utility.
Rolls-Royce SMR CEO, Chris Cholerton, said: “We are delighted to be one of the two SMR technologies selected by Vattenfall for further evaluation in Sweden. Success in reaching the final two, in such a fiercely competitive process, reflects the benefits of our integrated power station design, our approach to modularisation, and our use of proven nuclear technology.
“Rolls-Royce SMR is the fastest and most affordable way of bringing new nuclear power online and we are excited to work with utilities and industrial customers around the globe, to unlock sustainable sources of low-cost, low-carbon electricity for decades to come.”
Vattenfall’s focus will be deployment at the Ringhals nuclear site with a project that, at the earliest, is operational in the first half of the 2030s, with assessments for SMR and large-scale reactors ongoing.
Sweden has said it needs an additional 100-250 TWh of electricity production over the next 25 years and Vattenfall is poised to play a critical role in the country’s energy transition, including integrating new nuclear capacity into the energy mix.
Rolls-Royce SMR is on track to complete Step 2 and immediately enter Step 3 of the Generic Design Assessment by the UK nuclear industry’s independent regulators this summer. This will be the most important regulatory milestone to date – confirming Rolls-Royce SMR’s first-mover advantage as the leading technology in Europe.
“The Extinction Rebellion types who like gluing themselves to roads are right about one thing. It makes no logical sense to rail against coal and gas like Bowen does and yet export it to major ‘polluters’ like China and India. If you truly believe that CO2 will cause a climate catastrophe or global ‘boiling’ then why would you extract and export the stuff to be used by others, while investing $billions (perhaps $trillions) in solar panels and windmills imported from China in particular who has burnt our carbon to make the panels and windmills?
“And why would you cover thousands of square kilometres of our arable land and wildlife habitat with solar panels, windmills, and transmission corridors Doesn’t this mean we are actually paying China to pollute and destroy our wildlife and the planet? And if you don’t believe that the planet is going to boil then why spend all that money on Chinese imports when we could just burn the carbon ourselves in our own power stations? Doesn’t this seem mad? The logic of Labor is so conflicted that we are willing to impoverish ourselves for nothing. Indeed it is mad.”
“Bowen asserts that an SMR (small modular reactor) would cost $5 billion. Well, that means we could build at least 4 SMRs that would be hooked to the existing grid and generate at least 1GWh of electricity on 24/7 basis for 60-80 years! Bowen has not been keeping up with what Rolls Royce SMR is doing.
Rolls-Royce SMR will move away from the high cost and high-risk complex construction programme principles into predictable factory-built commodities. Approximately 90% of manufacturing and assembly activities are carried out in factory conditions, helping to maintain an extremely high-quality product – reducing on-site disruption and supporting international roll out.
“An equivalent solar farm would need to have a theoretical output of 3+GW and would need replacing at least 4 times in addition to the $20+billion for rewiring. These are your figures – nuclear is a bargain.”
SMALL MODULAR NUCLEAR REACTORS ARE THE WAY TO GO FOR AUSTRALIA AND THE REST OF THE WORLD. If that is the case then I suggest you look at investing in the two companies that look set to dominate this market. BWX Technologies and Rolls-Royce SMR Ltd. Westinghouse is also developing the “eVinci” Small Micro Reactor so it may be worth your while following its progress.
Whilst my calling is to alert the world to what God has next for this world – Jesus Millennial Kingdom, I could not resist bringing this opportunity to the followers of http://www.livingeternal.net. God has given me a talent for business and I am sure that Jesus will use me in business during His Millennial reign in some capacity. What about you, have you ever thought about how Jesus may use you during His Millennial reign on this earth? Remember, the curse has not been lifted, people are still born and die and Jesus and the Saints need to rule with a rod of iron. Remember, also that Satan is bound for most of the thousand years but when he is released he is still able to raise an army, their number like the sand of the sea, to come against Jesus and the Saints.
What is next on God’s agenda is not the new heaven and the new earth where only the righteous dwell.
LIVING ETERNAL NOW 