Key Step in U.S. Nuclear Power Expansion Plan: Westinghouse Secures $80 Billion Order, National Nuclear Capacity Target to Quadruple by 2050

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The United States is leveraging trade negotiations to secure critical energy supplies.

On October 28, according to media reports, the U.S. government has reached an $80 billion agreement with the owner of Westinghouse Electric to use funds provided through a trade agreement with Japan to build a number of nuclear reactors.

Brookfield Asset Management and Cameco, owners of Westinghouse Electric, announced on Tuesday that the two sides have established a new partnership to provide reactor technology for nuclear power plants. Brookfield stated that this investment will be sufficient to build about eight Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear power plants, or a combination of large facilities and small modular reactors.

The funding comes from a $550 billion agreement reached between Trump and Japan. Trump approved the agreement in his first meeting with Japan's new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Tuesday. According to documents issued by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the agreement has allocated up to $100 billion from the U.S. government for Westinghouse reactors.

According to media citing sources, the agreement was negotiated over the past few months by U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Brookfield executives. Brookfield CEO Bruce Flatt signed the agreement in Japan together with Trump and his negotiation representatives, including Lutnick.

Deep Government Involvement in Project Advancement

Sources said: Washington is expected to help Westinghouse Electric obtain land and permits for building reactors, and may even provide loan guarantees or help the company secure new international business. The Westinghouse deal also includes a profit-sharing mechanism, which could eventually give the U.S. government a large equity stake in the company, and the right to force it to go public.

Cameco stated in a release that, if the U.S. government invests the full $80 billion in Westinghouse reactors, then after $17.5 billion in profits is distributed to Westinghouse's current owners, the U.S. government will be entitled to 20% of the company's profits.

The statement added that if Westinghouse's value exceeds $30 billion by 2029, the U.S. government can also require the company to go public and convert its share of profits into a 20% equity stake.

Cameco stated:

Granting Washington these rights is “in recognition of the U.S. government’s anticipated support for partnership goals through deployment of its financial, regulatory, policy, and diplomatic means, thereby accelerating the creation of long-term value.”

Nuclear Power Industry Faces Construction Challenges

Trump has instructed the U.S. nuclear industry to accelerate the construction of large and small nuclear reactors, with a goal of reaching 400 gigawatts of capacity by the mid-century. This has stimulated growth in the industry and enabled companies to raise billions of dollars in funding, but there are market concerns that Washington appears unwilling to bear the risks of building facilities.

The two reactors at the Vogtle plant in Georgia are the last nuclear reactors built in the United States; the project faced years of delays and ultimately cost more than twice the original $14 billion budget, causing Westinghouse to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2017. In 2022, Brookfield’s energy transition fund and Cameco acquired Westinghouse Electric from another Brookfield fund for about $4 billion.

Nevertheless, Westinghouse said its AP1000 reactor is a proven and replicable design that can now be promoted on a large scale.

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