Gothamist77%
NJ's eying a nuclear future. But it'll need the feds to chip in. 53%
By Michael Sol Warren79%
7/17/2026, 10:30:43 AM
BS Summary: This article contains 31 faulty reasoning types, including Pessimism Bias, Optimism Bias, and Appeal to Authority, with Negativity Bias as the most egregious example at 15.7% saturation with 239 hits. Analysis detected 2,280 faulty-reasoning hits from 1,521 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 51.7% and a BS Rank of 53% (8,148 of 17,100 articles). This article is worse (more manipulative) than 52.40% of the article peer group.
The federal government wants America to have a nuclear energy renaissance.
New Jersey says bring it on.
Gov.
Mikie Sherrill signed the Power NJ Act into law on Monday, creating a new procurement process in the state for new nuclear power developments.
The new law comes as President Donald Trump is pushing for nuclear energy development around the country.
It’s a rare shared priority for the MAGA Republican president, the moderate Democratic governor and both parties in the New Jersey Legislature, as residents stare down spiking energy costs.
“A nuclear renaissance is taking shape across America with new partnerships and billions in federal funding, and New Jersey is ready to lead once again,” Sherrill said.
But it will take federal dollars to buffer New Jerseyans from costs that could sit on their utility bills for decades, and it’s not clear yet whether sharing an affinity for nuclear means Sherrill’s administration can expect fruitful support from Trump’s.
The Trump administration has set a goal to bring 300 gigawatts of nuclear power online by 2050 — a target that would roughly quadruple the nation’s current production.
It’s a central part of a federal energy plan that has also boosted coal and natural gas while pivoting away from renewable sources like solar and wind.
The Department of Energy did not respond to a request for comment.
Sherrill wants new nuclear power as part of a long-term plan to boost New Jersey’s energy supply.
New Jersey consumes more power than it produces.
PJM Interconnection, the regional grid that serves New Jersey and a dozen other states, faces a supply crunch that is worsening as power-hungry data centers come online faster than new energy sources.
At its annual supply auction earlier this week, PJM failed to secure enough power supply to ensure the grid reaches reliability standards in 2028.
It’s a supply-and-demand problem that has driven up electric bills and prompted Sherrill to make taming costs a centerpiece of her campaign.
The strain on the grid has shown during this month’s extreme heat.
From 5 to 6 p.m. on July 2, at the peak of the month’s first heat wave, 168,158 megawatts of electricity coursed through the PJM system.
It set an all-time peak load record for the grid, and PJM officials later said every single power generator connected to the grid was needed to meet that demand.
The new law, which state legislators passed unanimously, sets the stage for state authorities to accept future proposals for new nuclear power plants through a process that opens in January.
It requires future nuclear energy projects to secure federal funding before applying for state approval and prevents electric customers from paying for the work until the projects are actually producing electricity.
There’s also potential for data center developers to take on the costs for building a nuclear plant.
A separate law signed by Sherrill earlier this month incentivizes large data center projects to be built with their own power supplies.
“This isn't a subsidy,” Sherrill said.
“We're setting up a program to purchase nuclear energy at a fair price, and we're making sure we do it right by our ratepayers every step of the way.”
It’s the latest move from Sherrill and state lawmakers to prepare New Jersey for new nuclear.
Earlier this year, state leaders revamped coastal development rules that, for 50 years, had created a de facto moratorium on nuclear development in the Garden State.
It wasn’t just New Jersey.
The whole country went decades without building a new nuclear plant from scratch until ground broke on a project to build two new reactors in Georgia in 2009.
At the time, that project was expected to cost $14 billion and have both new power plants online by 2017.
They ultimately cost more than $30 billion, and it took until 2024 for both to be operational.
Sherrill said state officials watched what went wrong in Georgia closely, and designed the Power NJ Act to insulate residents from paying for delayed work and cost overruns.
She acknowledged it will likely take more than a decade for New Jersey to get another nuclear power plant online.
“This is how we build the future for our kids here in the state,” Sherrill said.
“This is how we don't kick the can down the road, and we make sure in 10 years we're not still facing a power generation problem or affordability crisis.”
Even with the upfront burden placed on utilities, developers and the federal government, costs to New Jerseyans could be substantial and long-lasting.
New Jersey’s Division of Rate Counsel, which advocates for utility customers, projects that building a single new nuclear power plant will increase the average resident’s electric bill about $7 each month — if the plant is built on schedule and on time.
Expected delays and cost overruns based on the experience in Georgia push that projected increase to about $22 each month.
Those added costs could sit on a ratepayer’s bill for up to 40 years.
“We probably won't make the same mistakes that were made in Georgia, but that doesn't mean that other mistakes won't be made,” said Brian Lipman, the director of the Division of Rate Counsel.
“There's not a strong track record on building one of these or how to build it on time.”
The success of the nuclear push, Lipman said, will ultimately come down to federal help.
“If the federal government is going to provide the money to build these, I think that would be fantastic.
It would be great for ratepayers if they didn't have to pay for it,” Lipman said.
“I am just concerned that ratepayers will be the backstop if the federal money doesn't show up.”
State officials hope to have a new nuclear plant built in Salem County, where the state’s three active nuclear plants are located.
It’s one of just six locations in the country that has pre-approval from federal regulators for a new nuclear plant to be built.
“ Now we just need someone to come up with about $24 billion dollars, and we're all set,” said state Sen.
John Burzichelli, referring to the estimated cost of building a new nuclear plant.
Burzichelli, a Democrat representing Salem County, sponsored the new law.
PSEG, which owns and operates the three active nuclear plants and holds the federal pre-approval to build one or two more in Salem County, said it is interested in enabling new nuclear development at the site.
“PSEG is proud of the people and performance of its existing nuclear generating sites, and we are excited about the future opportunities available associated with our early site permit in Salem County,” Marijke Shugrue, a PSEG spokesperson, said in a statement.
The former Oyster Creek nuclear plant in Ocean County, which is currently being decommissioned, could one day be the site of a new nuclear plant.
Holtec, the company that owns Oyster Creek, has said in regulatory filings it plans to build a small modular reactor there.
Holtec did not respond to a request for comment.
Sherrill said it's possible that such a project could one day benefit from the Power NJ Act, but she is skeptical of the technology Holtec is pushing.
“ I'd like to see large-scale ones as a proof-of-concept,” Sherrill said.
“Small modular nukes at Oyster Creek, I think, are a great idea, but the one that's almost the most shovel-ready right now would be Salem.”
Business groups praised the new law and the state’s renewed push for nuclear power.
“ Energy's not just another operating expense.
For many businesses, it's become one of their highest costs, affecting decisions about whether to hire, invest, expand, or raise prices,” said John Lucas, the interim president of the Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey.
“ Nearly 80%, 80% of small business owners reported that energy costs significantly impact them, and they have little room to absorb those costs.
Some are forced to pass them on to their customers, or it affects what they do for hiring.”
Lipman, who is skeptical that nuclear is a cost-effective way to deliver new electricity, pointed out that the new law requires the state Board of Public Utilities to reject a nuclear power plant proposal if regulators determine the costs are unreasonable.
“ I'm knocking on wood that there will be an honest proceeding at the board, and that if this is not a cost-effective plan, that we're not going to subsidize it, that we're not gonna just say yes to anything,” Lipman said.
And lingering concerns about the environmental impact of nuclear power, particularly about what to do with reactor waste, persist.
“When nuclear power plants were first put on line in the early 1970s, they claimed it would be too cheap to meter and resolution to the waste problem was imminent,” Amy Goldsmith, the New Jersey state director of Clean Water Action, said in a statement.
“Over 50 years later, nuclear power is considered the most expensive form of electricity, highly radioactive nuclear waste is being stored on site all over the country.”
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