Nuclear industry takes new path for new plants
ATLANTA (AP) — Power utilities are trying to buy the next wave of nuclear reactors much like a consumer buys a light bulb: right off the shelf.
Of the nation's 104 commercial reactors, no two are exactly the same, a fact that experts blame for causing construction and regulatory delays and leading to bigger bills for power customers. The longer it took to approve and build a reactor a generation ago, the more electric customers ended up paying in the end.
"That system just wasn't workable," said Richard Lester, head of the nuclear science and engineering department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
As the nation moves closer to breaking ground on its first nuclear plant in decades, industry executives want to avoid...
