What happened
The US Department of Energy has announced a $4.2 billion funding package to upgrade and modernize three nuclear power plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania. The loan commitment will be used by Vistra to finance improvements and modernization of its nuclear reactors, adding over 400 megawatts of new capacity to the grid.
Vistra's three existing nuclear power plants have a combined capacity of nearly 4 gigawatts, which is enough to power more than 3 million homes. The upgrades are expected to add roughly 433 megawatts of capacity and support around 3,000 jobs.
The move is part of the Trump administration's efforts to develop the nuclear energy industry, with a goal of quadrupling US nuclear capacity by 2050. The administration has also finalized loans for reopening decommissioned nuclear sites and announced over $17 billion in loans to build 10 new large nuclear reactors.
