Today, the House Financial Services Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions, led by Chairman Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-03), is holding a hearing entitled “International Financing of Nuclear Energy.”
Watch Chairman Luetkemeyer’s opening remarks here.
Read Chairman Luetkemeyer’s opening remarks as prepared for delivery:
“I want to welcome my colleagues and our witnesses to this hearing on international financing for nuclear energy.
“Clean nuclear power, such as that produced back in my district at Ameren’s Callaway nuclear plant, accounts for over a quarter of the world’s low-carbon electricity, and nearly 20 percent of all electricity in our country.
“In the words of the Department of Energy, ‘nuclear power is the most reliable energy source–and it’s not even close.’ Nuclear is also one of the safest sources of power, with one analysis estimating that it has been less risky to human health than even wind and hydropower.
“Of course, some have tried to demonize nuclear energy in the past, arguing that the world will eliminate carbon emissions through renewable energy alone. The results have been catastrophic. Germany, for example, has abandoned nuclear power, while just next door, France uses it to produce two-thirds of its electricity. What is the result? Germany’s per capita emissions are nearly double that of France.
“And while German households saw gas prices soar by over 50 percent last year due to the country’s reliance on Russia, the French are now lowering regional costs by exporting clean electricity to the rest of Europe.
“Clearly, nuclear is essential to energy security. At the same time, we cannot limit its reach to advanced economies. For instance, half of sub-Saharan Africa lacks access to electricity, and the renewables-only crowd wants to keep it that way. This has opened the door for China and Russia to explore nuclear cooperation not just on the continent but elsewhere in the developing world. It is past due for the United States to get back in the game and compete.
“Nuclear power provides us with a unique opportunity to push for a positive national security agenda. In 2019, Republicans worked to create the China and Transformational Exports Program at the Export-Import Bank, which allows the Bank to compete more effectively against Chinese nuclear projects abroad.
“This will allow the U.S. to provide foreign countries with real options to power their development with abundant clean energy–rather than constantly browbeat them about climate change. I have been pleased to see EXIM engaging in several discussions on future nuclear deals around the world, from Asia to Europe to Latin America.
“Republicans on this committee have also pushed the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to finally end their bans on nuclear financing, which fly in the face of those organizations’ rhetoric on climate. These lenders should be active in emerging markets and developing nations, not sit idly by while China and Russia try to export inferior nuclear technologies.
“I have been pleased to see progress in our efforts to enlist the international financial institutions for this cause. Just last month, the U.S. and 19 other countries committed to tripling nuclear energy capacity globally. This pledge explicitly encourages the World Bank and regional development banks to include nuclear in their lending policies. EBRD has already signaled that it may consider opportunities to support nuclear power projects.
“While Republicans certainly have policy differences with this administration, our shared support for nuclear financing has been a welcome source of cooperation. I am hopeful it will continue this year.
“For today’s hearing, we took great care to ensure our panel reflects scientific expertise, and I am pleased to see that many of our witnesses have engineering backgrounds. If we want to find genuine solutions to promote national security through nuclear energy policy, it needs to be fact-based and free of outdated ideologies.
“I want to thank our witnesses again for appearing before us today, and I look forward to their testimony.”
###