The Nuclear Industry Race - How Wyoming is becoming a staging ground in the competition between the U.S., Russia and China

by Wyoming Liberty Group

We may not fully realize it, but it appears that Wyoming is fast becoming a key staging ground in the race involving the United States against rivals Russia and China for domination in nuclear power--not just for weapons but also for civilian use.

This nuclear industry race may explain why so many vested interests are pushing hard to bring different forms of the nuclear industry to the cowboy state, given our long and varied history in the energy sector, which we all know is evolving.

That includes the $4 billion nuclear plant being built in the Kemmerer area by tech billionaire Bill Gates and others. The flurry of activity in Wyoming also includes a recently crafted bill that would bring nuclear storage to our state with a potential windfall of $4 billion, according to the bill's backers. And other nuclear industry moves include talks about bringing microreactors to Wyoming.

What's going on? Well, for one, the United States has for years not made nuclear industry a priority—until recently. Meanwhile, Russia and China have been incredibly aggressive in their efforts to dominate the field in recognition of the growing demand for power to light up communities all over the world.

Over the past several years, for example, Russia and China have been making major moves as exporters of nuclear reactors. Nearly 20 countries have ordered over 50 reactors from Russia. China, which is investing in civilian nuclear technology, isn't doing too badly either as it projects to export some 30 reactors over the next five years or so. Indeed, by 2030, China is expected to have built some 24 nuclear plants, surpassing the United States.

Let's put this in starker terms: Since 2017, nearly 90 percent of nuclear reactors under construction were designed not by us but by the Chinese or the Russians.

Here's the tally: While the United States has 93 operating commercial nuclear reactors at 54 nuclear power plants in 28 states, China has 55 operating nuclear reactors and 23 under construction. Russia has 38 nuclear power reactors in operation across 11 sites. Russia, notably, also is sitting pretty with nearly half of the world's enriched uranium—vital to create nuclear fuel.

All three superpowers—the United States, Russia and China—are also competing to build small modular reactors, otherwise known as SMRs, which are supposed to have the benefit of taking up less space and being more affordable.

And for what it's worth, Russia and China are collaborating not with us but with India to build a nuclear plant on the moon, with an expected completion date of about 2035. The idea is to create an energy source for lunar operations.

The United States, which is noticeably absent from that project, has chosen not to push the nuclear industry over the past several years for various reasons, not just because of the high costs involved but because of the hazards of storing nuclear waste and concerns about nuclear fuel falling into the wrong hands.

Let's also not forget those nuclear accidents that have been imprinted on memory throughout the world. That includes in our own backyard, in 1979, with the Three Mile Island accident.

All of which means that there has been a lack of political will in our country to advance nuclear energy. But that has begun to change in recent years because of the growing needs for energy. There's also a big push to expand renewable energies, such as solar and wind, but that's another story, which also is gaining greater traction in Wyoming.

Our inertia has also meant that we've fallen behind our Russian and Chinese rivals. The Chinese and Russians are embracing far more quickly advanced and emerging nuclear technologies, including the aforementioned SMRs, or small modular reactors.

So, this explains why Bill Gates and his partners—the U.S. government—are planning to spend $4 billion on an advanced nuclear reactor in the Kemmerer area. It's also why Rep. Donald Burkhart Jr. (R-Rawlins), who co-chair the Minerals, Business and Economic Development Committee, is pushing a bill that would permit the building of a private nuclear waste storage site in Wyoming. And it explains why there's growing talk about bringing microreactors to our state.

Wyoming is no longer just coal country. There's a nuclear race, and we're in the middle of it.