ALBANY, New York (WWNY) – A state watchdog group says it is concerned about the costs that could come with new nuclear power development in New York.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and other lawmakers have been pushing to develop nuclear power facilities to offset rising energy prices and demands.
“We’re going to build more nuclear than the entire country has in 30 years. That is my ambition. But it’s beyond an ambition; it’s something I’m going to execute,” Hochul said last Friday.
Watchdog cites $24 billion cost estimate
A group called Reinvent Albany says turning that vision into reality could bring $24 billion in taxes and electricity charges due to government subsidies, which they say is outlined in NYSERDA’s Advanced Nuclear Policy Options Paper.
“The fiscal burden placed on taxpayers and ratepayers is huge at 24 billion. It could be even more than that, and there’s a great risk associated with it given the potential for costs and construction overruns,” said Alex Camarda, senior policy advisor at Reinvent Albany.
Camarda pointed to financial risk, noting that the only two reactors built in the U.S. in the last three decades were $20 billion over budget and seven years late.
“They’re complicated projects, and usually the cost that’s projected is far exceeded by the reality on the ground,” Camarda said.
Lawmaker says risk can be managed
Assemblyman Scott Gray said the problem in those prior projects was human error in the engineering department and said that would not happen in New York.
“We’ve learned a lot, and that is: don’t engineer what you’re building. Make sure it’s all engineered and ready to go and then you stand up the site,” Gray said.
A spokesperson for Hochul said, “Advanced nuclear is one of the best available options to provide relief to consumers while strengthening the resilience of New York’s grid with round-the-clock emission-free energy that complements our continuing nation-leading efforts on wind and solar.”
Gray said he believes nuclear power is the best way forward.
“If you want to meet our climate targets in terms of reducing our emissions and have firm baseload power, nuclear is the only answer,” Gray said.
Copyright 2026 WWNY. All rights reserved.