Market Trends of North America Nuclear Power Plant and Equipment Industry
This section covers the major market trends shaping the North America Nuclear Power Plant & Equipment Market according to our research experts:
Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) Type to Dominate the Market
North America has a strong focus on nuclear power. The United States and Canada are focusing on nuclear power plant life extensions while also discovering the potential for small modular reactors.
As of November 2021, the United States operated the largest fleet of nuclear power reactors globally, with 93 units in almost 30 states with a combined capacity of 96.5 GW.
The pressurized water reactor (PWR) is the most widely-deployed nuclear reactor model globally. The United States is one of the largest markets for nuclear plants using PWR reactors.
According to the World Nuclear Organization, as of November 2021, of the 93 operational reactors in the country, 62 were PWR reactors, accounting for nearly 65.7% of the total installed nuclear capacity in the country.
Additionally, the only two units under construction in the United States, the Vogtle 3 and 4 nuclear reactors with a gross installed capacity of 2500 MW, will be using Westinghouse AP1000 PWRs.
PWR is the most commercialized nuclear reactor design type, and due to this, PWR type reactor is dominant in the nuclear power plant and equipment market. Despite lower efficiency and high initial investments, PWR is a mature technology with relatively lower operational costs. Due to this, most countries with both mature and young nuclear energy sectors are investing in PWR technology, and the reactor type is expected to dominate the market during the forecast period.
United States to Dominate the Market
The United States is among the largest nuclear power producers across the world and accounted for almost 31% of the global nuclear power generated in 2020. The country's nuclear reactors produced 96.55 GW of electricity in 2020, representing a slight decrease of 2.3% over the previous year's value.
As of December 2020, the United States had 94 operating commercial nuclear reactors at 56 nuclear power plants in 28 states.
The United States is building two new Westinghouse AP1000 reactors at Vogtle in Georgia, which are scheduled to start operating in Q2 2022 and November 2022, respectively. Both the plants have a power generating capacity of 1,250 MW each.
As of November 2021, the country had two planned nuclear power plants, namely Turkey Point 6&7 and UAMPS Carbon-Free Power Project, with power generation capacities of 2x1250 MW and 6x77 MW, respectively. In addition to planned nuclear power plants, around seven large and eleven small units are proposed in the country.
Therefore, with the construction of new power plants, the demand for nuclear power plants and equipment is projected to increase in the country during the forecast period.
