Nuclear Energy’s Role Grows as Power Demand Surges

Energy production could be about to go…well, nuclear. Wind and solar energy have had the attention of producers looking for alternatives to petroleum and natural gas. Farmland owners and investors have relied on them for a valuable income stream. But nuclear energy seems to be becoming a more frequent element of conversation nationally.

“We are truly at the beginning of a new industry,” U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said during an interview with Reuters at CERAWeek in Houston, Texas, last week.

The CERAWeek conference is an annual gathering of some of the most prominent leaders in the energy industry. The gathering is organized by S & P Global, a financial information and analytics company headquartered in Manhattan, New York.

RELATED: A solar project in Ohio received the necessary regulatory support that it needed to move forward. However, it must win this court decision. 

Secretary Wright previously served as CEO of Liberty Energy, one of North America’s largest hydraulic fracturing companies. He previously founded Pinnacle Technologies (commercial shale gas production via fracking) and Liberty Energy. Wright is one of several billionaires serving in the Trump administration.

Wright emphasized the administration's commitment to supporting small modular reactor (SMR) technology. Despite the absence of operational commercial SMR plants, the administration plans to provide financial and regulatory backing to meet the nation's growing power demands.

Artificial Intelligence Drives Need for More Power from Data Centers

Data centers to power artificial intelligence are a major reason why electricity demand is expected to rise in the United States. That demand has been relatively stable during the past two decades.

Domestic energy usage from data centers is expected to double or triple in the next three years, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. That prediction was part of the 2024 Report on U.S. Data Center Energy Use in December.

Jennifer Granholm-- U.S. energy secretary when the report became public -- said, “The United States has seen an incredible investment in artificial intelligence and other breakthrough technologies over the last decade and a half, and this industrial renaissance has created greater demand on our domestic energy supply.”  

The report laid out the consumption of total U.S. electricity by data centers.

• 2023: 4.4%

• 2028: 6.7%-12%

RELATED: Besides nuclear energy, there are numerous other power-focused projects in the works as producers think about their future needs. Here are some of them. 

NextEra Energy’s President and CEO John Ketchum sees a longer-term power need for the U.S. He forecasted a 55% increase in power demand over the next two decades compared to the previous two decades. Ketchum told the CERAWeek conference audience that demand for power has fueled costs for gas-fired power to triple. That makes renewable energy cheaper right now.

"We're going to need it all. We're going to need renewables. We're going to need gas. We're going to need nuclear," Ketchum said.

Part of that production could come from the Duane Arnold Energy Center in Palo, Iowa, northwest of Cedar Rapids. The center has not been in operation since 2020, when it shut down after 45 years of operation.

NextEra has asked the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a license change, which could allow the regulatory approval to restart the facility.

Agricultural Benefits from Nuclear Energy

There are several ways that nuclear energy can improve agricultural practices, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 

1. Animal Health – Transboundary animal and zoonotic diseases can get detected and prevented.

2. Soil and Water Management – Previous nuclear accidents can aid scientists by measuring soil erosion.

3. Insect Pest Management – Ionizing radiation can sterilize pests.

4. Food Safety and Control – Food could be safer by detecting or eliminating residues and contaminants that can be harmful in food productions.

5. Plant Breeding and Genetics – Gamma rays, X rays, ion or electron beams can begin genetic changes that can help plants adapt to weather changes.

RELATED: There are multiple energy sources that show promising potential, according to Dave Muth, Peoples Company Capital Markets Managing Director of Asset Management. Watch his conversation with American Farmland Owner here.