Under the agreement, the U.S. government will assist Westinghouse Electric’s Canadian owners, Cameco and Brookfield Asset Management, in arranging financing and obtaining regulatory permits for building new reactors. In return, the U.S. government will receive a 20% share of future profits once $17.5 billion in returns have been paid to Cameco and Brookfield. The government could also convert this profit share into an equity stake of up to 20% and may require an initial public offering of Westinghouse by 2029 if its market value exceeds $30 billion, the companies said.
The announcement coincided with Trump’s visit to Tokyo, where he stated that Japan would provide up to $332 billion in infrastructure support for the United States. This includes funding for the construction of Westinghouse AP1000 and small modular reactors. According to a joint fact sheet released on Tuesday, Japanese firms Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Toshiba, and IHI could participate in projects valued at around $100 billion. While the companies did not specify when the U.S. government’s investment would take effect, they noted that a final decision and formal agreements would be required before plant construction proceeds. Shares of Cameco rose more than 25% following the announcement.
However, challenges remain. Building new nuclear plants in the U.S. has long been constrained by high costs and public concerns over safety and waste disposal. The most recent Westinghouse projects at Georgia’s Vogtle site, completed in 2023 and 2024, were delayed by about seven years and cost $35 billion—more than double their original budget. Westinghouse filed for bankruptcy in 2017 due to cost overruns before being acquired by Brookfield, which now holds a 51% stake, with Cameco owning the rest.
Currently, no large nuclear reactors are under construction in the United States. In May, the Trump administration directed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to streamline its licensing process, aiming to reduce approval times to 18 months and set a goal for 10 new reactors by 2030. The move has raised questions about whether faster approvals could affect safety standards. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Trump had promised a “nuclear power renaissance” and was now delivering on that commitment.
Growing energy demand from major technology companies has also boosted interest in nuclear power. NextEra Energy and Alphabet’s Google recently agreed to restart an idle nuclear plant in Iowa, while Microsoft, Google, and Amazon have signed deals to source energy from advanced nuclear technologies. Constellation Energy and Microsoft are working together to restart a unit of the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania to supply electricity for Microsoft’s data centers.
