Pittsburgh region positioned to lead as U.S. aims to triple nuclear power production by 2050

A top official in the U.S. Department of Energy predicted the Pittsburgh region would play a big role in the Trump administration’s massive buildout of the nuclear industry that will see not only more large-scale reactors like Westinghouse Electric Co.’s AP1000, but also smaller generators that will power data centers and factories.

“You have the people here in the region; you have the industrial capacity; and you have the nuclear DNA to lead,” said Rick Christensen, associate deputy assistant secretary for nuclear reactors at the U.S. Department of Energy. He was the keynote speaker at the Energy & Industrial Future Summit held Wednesday in downtown Pittsburgh by the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance.

President Donald J. Trump’s four executive orders in May 2025 have sparked what Christensen called a nuclear renaissance: Speeding the development of newer small- and medium-sized reactors and expanding the capacity of the existing nuclear fleet, as well as tens of millions of dollars of federal money to develop and build at least 10 Westinghouse AP1000 reactors.