BOISE, ID – Hoping to become a hub for private nuclear development, the state of Idaho is asking representatives from the nuclear energy industry to provide input on the factors that influence locations they choose to invest in.
In a press release issued last month, the Idaho Governor’s Office of Energy and Mineral Resources announced that it issued a request for information document called “Nuclear Development Incentives.”
Through the document, the state hopes to identify specific initiatives that would make the Gem State the preferred destination for companies seeking to invest in nuclear development, state officials said.
Idaho is already home to Idaho National Laboratory, or INL, a U.S. Department of Energy national lab that describes itself as the nation’s leading nuclear energy research lab. Now, state leaders want to become a leading destination for companies investing in nuclear energy.
“Idaho’s long-standing infrastructure, skilled workforce, and policy leadership positions the state as an ideal destination for companies seeking to invest in nuclear development,” state officials said in a press release issued Oct. 28. “(The Idaho Governor’s Office of Energy and Mineral Resources) is eager to learn how Idaho can become the preferred location for nuclear development.”
Through the “Nuclear Development Incentives” request for information, the state hopes to learn key factors that influence site selection decisions, infrastructure requirements and preferences, regulatory and permitting considerations, workforce needs, effective incentives and partnership opportunities, as well as barriers to investment, state officials said.
Momentum has been building around nuclear energy in Idaho and through the United States in recent months. Idaho National Laboratory officials announced they are in the process of permitting and building the first new nuclear reactors in 50 years, the Idaho Capital Sun previously reported.
Idaho National Laboratory Director John Wagner told an interim committee of the Idaho Legislature in July that President Donald Trump is ushering in a nuclear renaissance by issuing a series of pro-nuclear executive orders and policies.
And in September Gov. Brad Little announced a new task force intended to advance nuclear energy.
“The world is changing rapidly,” Little said during a September visit to Idaho National Laboratory. “Energy demand is expected to increase by an unprecedented 30% in the near future. We cannot do that with our legacy energy. We are going to have to have scalable, safe nuclear energy.”
Responses to Idaho’s request for information are due by 5 p.m. Mountain time on Dec. 12.
This story first appeared on Idaho Capital Sun.
