{"id":1667827,"date":"2026-03-07T03:10:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T08:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/?p=1667827"},"modified":"2026-03-07T03:10:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T08:10:00","slug":"california-may-flip-50-year-nuclear-moratorium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/california-may-flip-50-year-nuclear-moratorium\/1667827\/","title":{"rendered":"California May Flip 50-Year Nuclear Moratorium"},"content":{"rendered":"

California May Flip 50-Year Nuclear Moratorium<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

California, long a leader in aggressive renewable energy mandates, is showing early signs of softening its decades-old ban on new nuclear power<\/strong>. Bloomberg reported<\/a> cracks are appearing in the state\u2019s 1976 moratorium, driven by surging electricity demand from AI data centers and the challenge of hitting absurd climate targets like 90% clean electricity by 2035 and 100% by 2045<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

At the center of the development is Assembly Bill 2647<\/a>, introduced last month by Democratic Assembly Member Lisa Calderon with Republican co-sponsors. The legislation would exempt \u201cadvanced nuclear reactors\u201d<\/strong>, defined as systems licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission since 2005, from the state\u2019s long-standing prohibition. Calderon stated the bill keeps nuclear \u201con the table\u201d as an essential tool for reliable, low-carbon power.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

The move aligns with a broader U.S. resurgence in nuclear interest, but in California it comes against a backdrop of chronic grid strain.<\/p>\n

The state has already leaned on its sole remaining nuclear facility, Diablo Canyon, to avoid worse outcomes. In 2022\/23, Governor Gavin Newsom pushed through lawsuits for an extension of the plant\u2019s operations past its original 2025 closure date after warnings of rolling blackouts. It was a glaring admission that electric grids are far from being sustainable with just wind and sunlight<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

PG&E Launches $73B California Grid Plan To Feed Starving AI https:\/\/t.co\/tsmtfalX1K<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 zerohedge (@zerohedge) September 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Just last week, Diablo Canyon cleared its final state permitting hurdles, paving the way for continued operation through at least 2030<\/strong> and potentially longer pending federal relicensing.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve chronicled these pressures for years. As far back as 2023<\/a> we detailed the legal battles surrounding Diablo Canyon\u2019s then-planned shutdown. Last year, we also noted<\/a> Newsom\u2019s clean-energy claims and how extensions of both Diablo Canyon and natural-gas plants were critical to preventing blackouts during peak summer demand.<\/p>\n

Even with massive investments in solar, wind, and batteries, California\u2019s grid has repeatedly flirted with instability<\/strong>, especially when intermittent renewables fall short during heat waves or evening ramps. The AI boom has only accelerated the problem; data centers are projected to drive unprecedented load growth nationwide, and California utilities are scrambling to keep pace.<\/p>\n

The bill does not mandate new reactors or repeal the moratorium outright. It simply removes a regulatory barrier rooted in 1950s-era technology concerns and unresolved federal waste-storage issues. Whether it passes and whether utilities or tech firms actually pursue advanced nuclear projects remains to be seen.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Tyler Durden<\/a><\/span>
\nFri, 03\/06\/2026 – 22:10<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200bhttps:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/energy\/california-may-flip-50-year-nuclear-moratorium<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

California May Flip 50-Year Nuclear Moratorium California, long a leader in aggressive renewable energy mandates, is showing early signs of softening its decades-old ban on…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1667828,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1667827","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1667827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1667827"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1667827\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1667849,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1667827\/revisions\/1667849"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1667828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1667827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1667827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1667827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}