New Jersey explores building new nuclear amid high PJM demand

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) released a Request for Information (RFI) to explore the opportunity to develop new nuclear energy resources to advance the state’s affordability, resource adequacy, and clean energy goals.

New Jersey and the larger PJM Interconnection region face increases in electricity demand as a result of load growth from AI data centers, new manufacturing facilities, and other energy intensive industries.

According to the PJM 2025 Long-Term Load Forecast, electricity demand within the region is expected to significantly increase, with a projected growth of nearly 40% in the next 14 years. Additionally, in March of 2025, the NJBPU and Governor’s Office presented modeling completed in support of the 2024 Energy Master Plan (EMP), which indicated a growing need for clean firm capacity to maintain system reliability post-2035.

“New Jersey is committed to addressing the regional cost crisis,” said governor Phil Murphy. “As part of my Administration’s all-of-the-above energy strategy, we continue to explore ways to bring online new sources of electricity generation and improve and expand our nuclear fleet to grow the supply of resources as the U.S. faces increasing demand. At the same time, we’re pushing PJM Interconnection to bring new resources online faster and reduce prices.”

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“New Jersey, and the region, need more electricity, and since day one of the Murphy Administration, our commitment to supporting our existing nuclear fleet has never waned,” said Christine Guhl-Sadovy, president, New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. “As we work to push PJM to improve their interconnection queue to allow more resources like solar and storage to be built in the short-term, expanding our nuclear fleet offers the Garden State an opportunity to add new generation to our resource mix, improving reliability and affordability for ratepayers in the long-term.”

NJBPU argues that new sources of electricity generation “must” come online to grow the supply of resources in order to ensure resource adequacy can be met in the region, while also driving down electricity capacity prices for ratepayers. Nuclear technologies, NJBPU continue, serve as “potential opportunities” that can help meet the growing need for new sources of generation.

New Jersey has three active thermal nuclear power reactors, Salem 1 and 2 and Hope Creek. The three reactors generate 40% of the state’s electricity and 85% of its emission-free generation. These three nuclear generation units, like most of the United States’ nuclear fleet, are known as third generation (GEN III) nuclear reactors.

However, recent technological and safety innovations have created the potential for new nuclear technologies to be developed. New nuclear development may involve Gen III+ Light Water Reactors (LWRs) and advanced reactors, which include non-LWR reactor designs and small modular reactors (SMR) that may or may not have an LWR design.

The deadline to submit responses to the RFI is 5:00 pm on June 23, 2025. All public comments should be filed under Docket No. QO25040202, here.

Originally published by Sean Wolfe on Factor This