Utah, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Idaho have moved closer to hosting major federal nuclear facilities that could produce reactor fuel, recycle used fuel, generate electricity and manage radioactive waste.
The five states were selected from 28 applications submitted by 26 states, according to the Department of Energy announcement released on July 28.
No final site has been approved. No construction contract has been awarded, and no nuclear waste shipment has been scheduled. The current agreements allow federal and state officials to continue developing the proposals.
Oklahoma officials said the Department of Energy plans to pursue projects in as many as three states. That means at least two of the five finalists may be removed from consideration before construction begins.
Where the Nuclear Campuses Could Be Built?
| State | Possible location | Current position |
|---|---|---|
| Utah | Tooele County | State and county officials have publicly backed the proposal. |
| Tennessee | Oak Ridge | The state submitted Oak Ridge as its preferred location. |
| Oklahoma | Not selected | Officials will now work with communities interested in hosting the campus. |
| Louisiana | Not publicly identified | The state is a finalist, but no specific community has been announced. |
| Idaho | Idaho National Laboratory region | The proposal builds on existing federal nuclear facilities and research programs. |
Utah has provided one of the clearest location proposals. The state and Tooele County began publicly discussing a campus in March, with officials pointing to the western part of the county as an area with industrial land, existing infrastructure and a long history of handling federal defense and energy projects.
The Utah proposal includes nuclear fuel development, used fuel recycling and long term fuel management. Tooele County already contains the EnergySolutions disposal site at Clive, although the new campus would be a separate and much broader project.
Any development would affect a state that has recorded some of the fastest growth in the country. Our Utah population profile provides more detail on how quickly communities across the state are expanding.
Tennessee Wants the Campus in Oak Ridge
Tennessee has formally proposed Oak Ridge, one of the most established nuclear research centers in the United States.
The area is home to Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex. More than 230 businesses connected to the nuclear fuel cycle operate in the Oak Ridge and Knoxville region, according to the Tennessee government announcement.
The state proposal covers possible fuel production, advanced reactors, manufacturing, electricity generation and temporary or long term storage of used nuclear material.
Tennessee already has a large and growing population near major industrial areas. NCHStats recently examined population growth across Tennessee, including the rapid expansion around Nashville and other metropolitan regions.
Oklahoma Has Not Selected a City
Oklahoma is taking a different approach. State officials have not named a preferred location and will now ask communities to determine which areas want to be considered.
Governor Kevin Stitt said the project could add nuclear power to an economy already built around oil, natural gas and wind energy. The Oklahoma announcement also mentioned possible research involving biotechnology and aerospace.
Oklahoma does not currently have a commercial nuclear power plant. A state feasibility study released earlier in 2026 found that nuclear generation was technically possible but warned that costs, regulations and competition from other energy sources would need to be addressed.
The choice of location will matter because the Oklahoma population is spread across large rural areas as well as growing communities around Oklahoma City and Tulsa. Transport routes, water use and distance from populated areas are likely to become important parts of any local proposal.
Idaho Already Has Much of The Required Infrastructure
Idaho enters the competition with more than 70 years of nuclear research and an existing federal site covering about 890 square miles.
The state proposal centers on the capabilities of Idaho National Laboratory, including reactor testing, fuel research and facilities designed to examine highly radioactive materials.
Governor Brad Little said Idaho wants to build on that existing system rather than create an entirely new nuclear industry. The official Idaho proposal presents the laboratory region as the foundation for a larger campus.
Idaho has also been preparing to receive limited shipments of used fuel from university research reactors. Those existing research shipments are separate from the much larger federal campus proposal.
Population growth could still shape the public debate. Idaho has added residents quickly in recent years, as shown in the our review of Idaho population growth.
Louisiana Is a Finalist, but The Possible Site Remains Unknown
Louisiana has not publicly identified a parish or city for the campus. The state already operates two commercial nuclear power stations and has a large workforce connected to electricity generation, petrochemicals, ports and major industrial construction.
The Department of Energy included a statement from Governor Jeff Landry saying Louisiana is prepared to take part in the next period of nuclear development. No separate site map or detailed public proposal was released with the federal announcement.
Until a location is named, residents cannot know which roads, rail lines, waterways or communities might be involved. Louisiana also faces unusual environmental questions because of hurricanes, flooding, wetlands and low lying land.
The Louisiana population shows where residents are concentrated and how the state has changed in recent years. Those patterns will be relevant once officials identify possible locations.
What Could Be Built at Each Campus?
The word campus makes the plan sound like a group of laboratories. The proposal could include much more than research buildings.
Under the original Department of Energy request for interested states, a campus may contain:
- plants that manufacture nuclear reactor fuel
- uranium enrichment facilities
- facilities that recycle used nuclear fuel
- storage areas for spent fuel and radioactive waste
- advanced nuclear reactors
- electricity generation facilities
- factories producing nuclear equipment
- large data centers powered by nearby reactors
Not every selected state would necessarily receive every type of facility. One campus could focus on fuel production and reactors, another could handle recycling, and a third could have a larger role in waste management.
The federal government estimates that one fully developed campus could attract up to $50 billion in investment, create nearly 25,000 jobs and produce as much as $10 billion in state and local tax revenue.
Those figures are projections. They are not guaranteed investments, signed construction contracts or confirmed tax payments.
The five states also differ greatly in economic size. Our ranking of US states by GDP shows Tennessee as the largest economy among the finalists, followed by Louisiana, Utah, Oklahoma and Idaho.
What Type of Nuclear Waste Would the Campuses Receive?
The plan is mainly concerned with used fuel from nuclear reactors, not ordinary industrial waste.
Fuel removed from a reactor can no longer produce electricity efficiently, but it remains extremely hot and radioactive. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission explains that spent fuel must be stored safely until it can be recycled or moved to a permanent disposal facility.
Most commercial spent fuel in the United States remains at current or former nuclear power plants. Some is stored in water filled pools, and some has been moved into large dry storage containers.
Commercial reprocessing is not currently practiced in the United States. Reprocessing separates material that can be used again from the waste that remains. The new campuses could attempt to bring that part of the fuel cycle back to the United States.
No State Can Begin Receiving Waste Immediately
The agreements signed in July do not allow trucks or trains carrying spent fuel to begin arriving.
A project would still need an exact site, an operator, environmental studies, safety plans and the required federal approvals. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing process covers reactors, fuel cycle facilities, nuclear material, waste storage and certain transportation activities.
Spent fuel must travel inside certified containers designed to contain radiation and heat. The NRC regulates the containers, security rules and inspections used during spent nuclear fuel transportation.
Officials would also need to disclose the likely road or rail routes before regular shipments begin.
Why the Government Is Moving Now?
The administration wants to increase nuclear generation as electricity use rises. New factories, electric vehicles and data centers are placing more pressure on power systems across the country.
Our team at NCHStats previously reported that the United States could face major electricity problems before 2030 if new generation and grid construction fail to keep pace with demand.
Building reactors beside large data centers could provide continuous power without sending all of the demand through existing transmission lines. Combining reactors with fuel production and waste facilities could also reduce the number of separate locations required for the nuclear industry.
What Residents in The Five States Should Watch Next?
The July announcement is important, but it is still an early step. The details that matter most have not been released.
Residents should watch for exact site maps, proposed transport routes, environmental reports, water requirements, emergency plans and descriptions of the material that each campus would receive.
Public hearings and federal licensing records will show when a proposal moves from political support to an actual construction plan.
Utah, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Idaho are currently competing for projects, investment and jobs. None has final approval to become a national nuclear waste hub, and only three may reach the next stage.
