Das dürfte auch daran liegen, dass sich die teure Atomkraft kommerziell nicht lohnt, wenn sie nicht massiv subventioniert wird.

In a liberalized market, financing on nuclear power can be more difficult due to uncertainties on future electricity prices that result in higher cost of capital, thus making nuclear power projects less attractive for investors. Long-term power purchase agreements can shield investors from power market volatility, especially from a large share of intermittent renewable sources. In the absence of a significant carbon price, governments have to continue providing policy incentives that improve the NPV of low-carbon investments and mitigate the market risks (NEA, 2015). In the United States, nuclear power plants are experiencing lower electricity prices, which can result in unprofitable conditions. Six nuclear plants are scheduled to shut-down by 2025 for economic reasons and five other nuclear plants have requested state-level price support (EIA, 2018c)

Sudden ad-hoc tightening of safety regulations and changing political environments can also result in construction delays. During the construction time, funds must be made available without revenues from electricity generation, and the interest cost on loans during the construction period is relatively high. If there is an extension on the building period, total investment costs will rise due to construction interest. Moreover, the planned investment costs also depend on the extent to which the risks of cost overruns are included. The risks of construction delays and cost-overruns are crucial for financing considerations. Most plants under construction have strong government involvement or are often government-sponsored, as few utilities are able to develop new nuclear plants without a sort of government guarantee or long-term power purchase agreement (NEA, 2015).