Pennsylvanians are rightly proud of our rich legacy as one of the nation’s top energy producers. After all, we rank second in the United States for both natural gas production and nuclear energy production. With energy demand reaching record levels, electricity prices climbing at alarming rates, and foreign fuel markets becoming increasingly erratic, now is the time to step up Pennsylvania’s energy production.
And that starts with nuclear energy — the single largest zero-carbon energy source in Pennsylvania. Not only is Pennsylvania a national leader in nuclear energy production, but we also are the site of the first-ever civilian nuclear reactor. The former Shippingport Atomic Power Station was operational from 1957 until 1982, making it the world’s first full-scale atomic electric power plant devoted exclusively to peacetime uses. Pennsylvanians were the first to use nuclear energy, and now we’re fast becoming the nation’s leading supplier of nuclear power infrastructure.
The planned restart of Three Mile Island Unit 1, now named the Crane Clean Energy Center, will bring Pennsylvania’s fifth nuclear power plant back online in an exclusive deal with Microsoft to purchase the more than 800 megawatts of electricity the plant will generate and add to the regional power grid.
Meanwhile, Cranberry Township-based Westinghouse Electric company has announced it plans to construct 10 advanced modular nuclear reactors across the United States. According to the company’s estimates, those 10 reactors — once deployed across the nation — would generate $92.8 billion in gross domestic product for the U.S. and support more than 44,000 jobs annually for 13 years. Beyond that, the company estimates the reactors would support 22,500 jobs annually once they are operational.
Speaking of jobs, Pennsylvania is also reenergizing our workforce, with key investments from colleges, universities and state and federal governments. Penn State University recently announced a new $6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, which will support new workforce training opportunities in nuclear materials and energy research.
Our neighboring states — including New York, Maryland and West Virginia — are planning significant investments in nuclear energy. Pennsylvania stands ready to lend a hand up to our neighbors, so that our entire nation can build a stronger and more resilient energy grid. We’re already one of the nation’s leading suppliers of electricity. With new public- and private-sector investments, Pennsylvania can also be the nation’s leading supplier of skilled energy workers and state-of-the-art nuclear generation infrastructure.
All these efforts are part of a comprehensive approach to meeting the nation’s future energy needs and bolstering reliability of the nation’s power grid. And they reinforce our strong belief that we can, and must, find a better way forward that sets political partisanship aside to ensure our energy future is proudly “made in PA.”
Kate Harper and Conor Lamb are co-chairs of Energy Future PA, a nonpartisan coalition focused on securing Pennsylvania’s leadership in a decarbonized energy economy. Harper is a former Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, representing parts of Montgomery County, and Lamb is a former Democratic U.S. Congressman from Allegheny County.