With the development of offshore wind farms under attack by President Donald Trump’s administration, some Rhode Island legislators are now looking to help utility companies secure long-term nuclear energy contracts to diversify the Ocean State’s energy portfolio.
Matching bills introduced in both chambers last month would open the door for utility companies – namely, Rhode Island Energy, the state’s only major utility – to purchase nuclear power from energy plants in other states.
Nuclear power has long been controversial because of the risk of devastating accidents and radioactive waste, but supporters of the legislation say it will provide the option of buying a clean and affordable energy source that could lower electricity bills.
“A diversified energy portfolio is important for Rhode Island,” said Rep. Joseph J. Solomon Jr., the primary sponsor of the House bill. “If costs go up in one area, or if wind farms are being targeted as they are now, we will have nuclear energy to fall back on.”
Rhode Island Energy backs the legislation and says it would save its customers money on the supply portion of their utility bills. “This energy is already produced in Connecticut whether we purchase it or not,” said Rhode Island Energy President J. Gregory Cornett. “Rhode Island needs a piece of that pie.”
Considering the political threats to wind energy, “the timing couldn’t be more appropriate,” he said.
Meanwhile, House and Senate leadership say it’s too early in the process to determine whether the legislation is worthy of support.
Others have made clear their dislike for the idea.
Environmental activists say Rhode Island is already investing in clean, renewable offshore wind energy with several farms under construction off the Rhode Island coast. Nuclear power production, however, generates tons of radioactive waste each year, they say.
“Nuclear waste lasts tens of thousands of years,” said Rex Wilmouth, state director of Environment Rhode Island, which is affiliated with the nonprofit Environment America Inc.
Wilmouth acknowledges the threat to the future of wind energy posed by the Trump administration, which has ordered a halt to wind leasing and permitting in federal waters.
“Still, nuclear is not clean renewables, point blank,” Wilmouth said. “It’s a dangerous and dirty way to provide energy.”
Low-emissions nuclear energy has seen a resurgence recently because of the growing concerns about climate change, energy security and the need to operate more power-thirsty artificial intelligence data centers.
In Rhode Island, utility rates are a hot-button issue. Residents recently packed an R.I. Public Utilities Commission hearing to complain about high energy bills even though the PUC was considering proposals to decrease rates.
Todd Bianco, PUC chief economic and policy analyst, told Providence Business News that the agency has taken no position on the nuclear energy proposal and noted that it’s unclear whether it would lower energy costs.
The legislation would not authorize the construction of a nuclear power plant in Rhode Island, which has a small research reactor at the University of Rhode Island’s Bay campus in Narragansett.
For now, the state mainly runs on natural gas, accounting for 89.2% of Rhode Island’s utility-scale electricity generation in 2023, the second-largest share of any state, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Wind power contributed about 2% of Rhode Island’s total net electricity generation, and nuclear energy contributed nothing.
Solomon says the state must start looking at nuclear energy to meet the goal of having 100% renewable energy by 2033.
“We have to look at other energy options,” Solomon said.
