The decline of the U.S. nuclear-power industry puts America’s security at risk, according to a report being released Tuesday by former Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz that calls for greater federal investment.
The report from the Energy Futures Initiative and obtained by Bloomberg News says a commercial atomic power sector is necessary to keep uranium-processing technology away from terrorists and other bad actors as well as support nuclear-powered Navy vessels.
The report by Moniz, a nuclear scientist who served as energy secretary under President Barack Obama, calls for expanded government loan guarantees, tax incentives and research on nuclear technology. The report doesn’t mention President Donald Trump, who is proposing cutting nuclear research funding and killing the loan guarantee program.
Nuclear power makes up about 20 percent of U.S. electricity generation, but the industry has been struggling.
Five nuclear plants, with a combined capacity of 5 gigawatts, have closed early since 2013,
