The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved the License Termination Plan for the Oyster Creek nuclear plant in New Jersey. With this green light, Holtec International can move forward with the construction of four SMR-300 reactors on the same site, targeting commercial operation by 2036. The facility’s total generating capacity will reach 1,360 MW — more than double the 636 MW produced by the original reactor, which operated for nearly fifty years.
Oyster Creek has a long history. It received its construction permit in December 1964 and began commercial operation in December 1969, becoming the oldest commercial reactor in the United States before Exelon shut it down in September 2018. Holtec acquired the license from Exelon Generation in 2019 with the immediate goal of decommissioning the site. More than half of the decommissioning work is now complete, and the NRC’s approval of the License Termination Plan establishes the final pathway before the land can be cleared for new use. Holtec expects to complete decommissioning and final status surveys by 2029.
The SMR project calls for four units of 340 MW each — pressurized water reactors equipped with passive safety systems. The four modules will form part of a hybrid energy complex that also includes a solar array and battery storage systems. Holtec listed Oyster Creek as a project in the “Development Phase” in a securities filing dated July 10. The site sits just 34 miles from Holtec’s headquarters in Camden, New Jersey, a proximity the company views as a concrete logistical advantage for project development.
New Jersey’s legislative landscape has played a decisive role. Governor Mikie Sherrill lifted the state’s more than forty-year moratorium on nuclear power in April, reopening the door to new plant construction. On July 13, she signed the Power NJ Act, legislation that initiates a procurement process for at least 1,100 MW of new nuclear energy in the state. This regulatory framework has given Holtec the conditions it needed to accelerate its plans for Oyster Creek, backed by strong local community support. On the jobs front, the company estimates the construction phase will generate approximately 4,000 positions, with more than 400 permanent roles once the plant is operational.
The implications extend well beyond New Jersey. Holtec is also pursuing regulatory approval for two additional SMR-300 reactors at the Palisades site in Michigan, where the NRC has launched its environmental review. Oyster Creek thus joins a growing portfolio of sites where the same technology is being pushed toward commercialization. If the 2036 target holds, it would mark one of the first large-scale SMR plants to enter service in the United States. The project also envisions integration with data centers serving artificial intelligence workloads — a clear signal that surging industrial energy demand is becoming one of the concrete drivers behind America’s nuclear renaissance.
