Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
Director Michael Kratsios of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy discussed the one-year anniversary of President Trump's nuclear energy executive orders at the Operation Gigawatt Summit in Utah. He described the orders as the most significant decision for civil nuclear power since the Atoms for Peace initiative in 1953, which accelerated the growth of U.S. nuclear plants, though momentum later stalled.
Kratsios noted that, before these executive orders, the U.S. was closing reactors, not testing new ones, and relied on foreign sources for nuclear fuel. New reactor licensing was slow, with Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reviews taking over 20,000 hours and combined operating licenses issued after 48–60 months. Amendments for power uprates could take up to two and a half years, discouraging innovation with lengthy paperwork and frequent rejections.
The executive orders reversed these trends by reforming regulations and policies, beginning what Kratsios called a revolution in American power infrastructure. In the past year, the industry has regained momentum with progress in building and testing reactors. A key goal from the President directs the Department of Energy to achieve criticality in at least three test reactors before July 4, 2026—a goal stakeholders now view with increased confidence.
Kratsios emphasized the importance of federalism and the role of states like Utah in nuclear development, expressing optimism that recent progress will support sustained innovation in the sector for decades to come.