Senior Official of U.S. Nuclear Energy Institute Calls Building New Reactors ‘Imperative’ in Japan; Communication Key to Nuclear Power Acceptance

By Yoshimune Numata / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

15:23 JST, May 14, 2025

Japan and other countries will find it “imperative” to build new nuclear reactors as demand for electricity grows with the spread of generative artificial intelligence, according to an official of the Nuclear Energy Institute.

John Kotek, 57, made the comment in an interview with The Yomiuri Shimbun in Tokyo in April while visiting the country at the invitation of the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, Inc. Kotek is senior vice president of the institute, which comprises U.S. entities connected to the nuclear energy industry.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, there were 94 nuclear reactors in the United States in 2024 with a total generating capacity of 97 gigawatts, the largest capacity in the world. In Japan, only 14 reactors are in operation in the wake of the 2011 accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc.’s (TEPCO) Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, and the construction of new reactors has ground to a halt.

“Public opinion surveys in the U.S. show that support for nuclear power is roughly 20% higher in communities that host nuclear power plants,” Kotek said.

A reason for this, he explained, is that some utility companies arrange plant tours when requested by local schools and members of the public. They also host lectures and other events featuring nuclear experts to dispel locals’ concerns.

Kotek praised Japan’s nuclear power industry for its innovative technological capabilities and said that those capabilities will make the country a “key player in the global expansion of nuclear energy.”

He also applauded the introduction of an advanced boiling water reactor (ABWR) at the No. 6 reactor of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture, noting that the process from laying the foundations to loading the fuel took only three years. The plant, operated by TEPCO, was the first in the world to adopt an ABWR.

In the United States, the No. 1 reactor at the Three Mile Island Nuclear Station is expected to resume operations as early as in 2028. The No. 1 reactor is adjacent to the reactor that caused a meltdown.

In reference to the incident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, which is currently undergoing decommissioning, Kotek said that public trust can be restored in nuclear power businesses if the proper procedures are followed and persistent work is done, alongside efforts to engage in regular communication with local communities.

John Kotek, senior vice president of the Nuclear Energy Institute

Kotek holds a bachelor of science in nuclear engineering from the University of Illinois and a master of business administration from the University of Maryland. He was previously a U.S. congressional fellow and served in such posts as manager of research and development programs at the Idaho National Laboratory and acting assistant secretary for nuclear energy in the U.S. Energy Department. He assumed his current post in 2017.