Vogtle Nuclear Power Plant is located in Burke County, Georgia, USA, near Waynesboro. Each of the two existing units is equipped with a Westinghouse pressurized water reactor (PWR) with a General Electric turbine and generator, generating approximately 2,400 MW of electricity. Two Westinghouse AP 1000 reactors are under construction here.
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The Trump administration’s plan to spend tens of billions of dollars on the Westinghouse nuclear power plant could turn it into an independent, publicly traded company with the U.S. government as its major shareholder.
The Commerce Department signed a contract with Westinghouse’s owners last week. Cameco $80 billion with Brookfield Asset Management to build the company’s nuclear power plants across the United States.
Under the deal, the U.S. government is given the right to participate in Westinghouse and could request an initial public offering by January 2029 if the company’s value soars to more than $30 billion.
Under this scenario, the government could become an 8% shareholder in Westinghouse, Cameco Chief Operating Officer Grant Isaac said during the company’s third-quarter earnings call Wednesday. Isaac said the deal does not entitle him to any shares in Cameco or Brookfield.
The executive said Cameco would consider spinning out Westinghouse as an independent company in 2029, depending on the circumstances.
“There is certainly a unique interest in investing solely in Westinghouse,” Isaac said. “Cameco is that interesting agency. Brookfield is probably an even more interesting agency that invests only in Westinghouse.”
Cameco is one of the world’s largest uranium miners, and Brookfield is one of the largest investors in energy generation.
“We’re going to keep all options on the table,” Isaac said. “This partnership agreement does not force us to exit Westinghouse in 2029. We are not required to sell our shares. If the value of Westinghouse is significant, we could sell in 2029 when that window opens.”
US government loan
The government’s interest in Westinghouse will only be finalized if the company makes a final investment decision under a definitive agreement to build new nuclear reactors in the United States totaling $80 billion.
Isaac said the U.S. could use tools such as Department of Energy loans or loans from “other jurisdictions” to fund the project, among other options.
“We are confident that there will be a lot of interest in this minimum $80 billion investment to start the process,” the executive said.
Westinghouse is designing a large, advanced nuclear reactor called the AP1000 that the Trump administration wants to deploy across the United States to meet growing power demand from data centers and manufacturing. It will generate gigawatts of electricity, enough to power more than 750,000 homes.
In May, President Donald Trump signed an executive order requiring the United States to begin construction of 10 large nuclear reactors by 2030. Westinghouse CEO Dan Sumner said in July that the company would respond to President Trump’s call with AP1000.
However, Westinghouse has historically struggled to deliver the AP1000 on time and on budget. It filed for bankruptcy in 2017 due to cost overruns on large nuclear projects in Georgia and South Carolina.
The first two AP1000 reactors in the United States came online in 2023 and 2024 at the Vogtle plant in Georgia, but the South Carolina project was canceled.
Westinghouse was acquired by Brookfield & Cameco in 2023, five years after emerging from bankruptcy. Brookfield owns 51% of Westinghouse, and Cameco owns 49%.
Isaac said the nuclear industry needs large orders for reactors to stimulate the market and supply chain. The official said the U.S. government is doing its part.
“What the U.S. government has done is step in and act as a stimulant, so to speak. Their efforts are to facilitate financing,” he said.
