Nuclear TODAY

Nuclear power capacity worldwide is increasing steadily, with almost 60 reactors under construction.

The steady growth is being witnessed in most regions worldwide, but more plans are in the Asian region, though there are major plans for new units in Russia. Further emphasis is also being put on upgrading and restarting nuclear power plants in nations like Japan. Nuclear power plants (NPPs) lifetime extension programmes are maintaining capacity, particularly in the USA.

Currently, there are about 416 nuclear power reactors operating in 34 countries plus Taiwan, with a combined capacity of about 375 GWe. In 2023, these provided 2,552 TWh, about 10% of the world's electricity.

The present situation of plants developed and other factors such as carbon reduction are monitored by the OECD's International Energy Agency (IEA) in its World Energy Outlook (WEO) report each year. In the 2021 edition (WEO 2021), the IEA's 'Stated Policies Scenario' sees installed nuclear capacity growth of over 26% from 2020 to 2050 (reaching about 525 GWe). The scenario envisages a total generating capacity of 17,844 GWe by 2050, with the increase concentrated heavily in Asia, in particular, India and China.

All details and official information are available on IAEA PRIS (Last update: 23 June 2024)

Nuclear Plants in Construction

Today, almost 60 reactors are under construction all over the world ...

Increased Capacity

Increased nuclear capacity in some countries is resulting from the uprating of existing plants. This is a highly cost-effective way of bringing on new capacity in the nuclear industry.

Plants Lifetime Extensions and Retirements

Most nuclear power plants originally had a nominal design operating lifetime of 25 to 40 years, but engineering assessments have established that many can operate longer.