An examination of the pursuit of nuclear power plant construction projects in the United States

Abstract

The recent serious reconsideration of nuclear power as a means for U.S. electric utilities to increase their generation capacity provokes many questions regarding the achievable success of future nuclear power plant construction projects. The troublesome nature characterizing much of the history of U.S. nuclear power plant commercialization provides impetus for an examination of the reasons behind the unanticipated outcomes of many nuclear power plant construction projects. An examination of the history of U.S. nuclear power provides for both an understanding of the historical context of the technology, in addition to an acknowledgement of the difficulties that have surrounded its commercialization. This thesis work identifies the factors that have contributed most significantly to the inability of U.S. electric utilities to successfully manage nuclear power plant construction projects. The historical record of these endeavors was used to create a causal-loop diagram. This diagram reflects a generalized decision-making process used by electric utilities when considering the pursuit of nuclear power plant construction. From the results of the diagram, policy changes are proposed that could reduce the susceptibility of the decision-making process to environmental instabilities and increase the overall attractiveness of the technology.