New Jersey Gov. Sherrill signs Power NJ Act, launching advanced nuclear energy procurement program

New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill signed the Power NJ Act on July 13, putting the state on a formal path toward building advanced nuclear energy facilities. The law directs the Board of Public Utilities—working alongside the state’s Economic Development Authority—to set up an advanced nuclear energy procurement program. The BPU has 180 days to issue a request for expressions of interest from developers.

Sherrill signs Power NJ Act into law

The bill moved fast and with broad support. It cleared both the state assembly and senate with unanimous votes before landing on Sherrill’s desk. That kind of bipartisan consensus is rare for energy legislation, which usually sparks sharp fights over cost, siting, and technology choices.

Once the 180-day clock runs out, the BPU must have a formal request out to developers ready to build advanced nuclear projects in New Jersey. The Economic Development Authority works alongside the BPU to stand up the program.

The act also establishes a Reliable Capacity Certificate program, a financial support mechanism designed to back at least 1,100 megawatts of new capacity.

What led to the Power NJ Act

The road to this signing started on Sherrill’s very first day in office. On January 20, she declared a state of emergency on utility costs and signed two executive orders—one to freeze rate hikes, and another to expand the state’s generation capacity.

That second order created a nuclear task force with a mandate to coordinate state agencies and develop a strategy for building new nuclear generation. It immediately hit a wall.

A longstanding state law blocked the Department of Environmental Protection from issuing permits for new nuclear plants unless a federally approved nuclear waste disposal pathway existed. That pathway doesn’t exist—so technically, no new plant could legally get a permit.

Sherrill fixed that in April. She signed legislation allowing the DEP to approve permits based on safe, NRC-compliant waste storage, removing the old barrier entirely. At the same signing, she formally launched the Nuclear Task Force and outlined five focus areas: financing, supply chains and technology development, workforce growth and training, regulatory and permitting framework, and public trust and confidence. With that legal obstacle cleared, momentum built steadily. The Power NJ Act is the direct legislative result of those months of groundwork.

How the procurement process will work

The 180-day window for expressions of interest is just step one. After reviewing submissions, the BPU may grant provisional qualification to one or more projects—a status that opens the door to direct negotiations on cost, target commercial operation date, and siting. Those details will ultimately determine whether any project moves from paper to construction.

The act also establishes a Reliable Capacity Certificate program, a financial support mechanism designed to back at least 1,100 megawatts of new capacity. The legislation is careful to note that the 1,100 MW figure “shall not constitute a commitment by the state to procure any specific quantity of generation.” It sets a floor for financial support, not a binding procurement target.

On who pays, Sherrill was direct. According to the New Jersey Monitor, she said ratepayers “won’t pay a dime until the project is built” and “will never be on the hook for construction cost overruns.” She framed the act as a way to avoid past mistakes—making sure the state isn’t still facing a generation shortfall or an affordability crisis a decade from now.

Background: New Jersey’s nuclear landscape

The New Jersey government isn’t starting from zero. The state already hosts co-located nuclear plants at Hope Creek and Salem, giving it real operational experience and existing infrastructure. Multiple outlets have reported that officials examined a site near those plants as a potential location for new development, though nothing has been formally announced.

The Nuclear Task Force’s five focus areas reflect just how broad the challenge actually is. Financing alone is a serious hurdle—advanced nuclear projects carry large upfront capital costs. Supply chains for new reactor designs are still maturing, the workforce needs to grow, and permitting frameworks need updating. Public confidence has to be earned, not assumed.

The Power NJ Act is the legislative culmination of everything Sherrill set in motion on day one. In roughly six months, the state went from an executive order creating a task force to a signed law with a formal procurement program.

New Jersey isn’t alone here. A growing number of states are pursuing advanced nuclear capacity as electricity demand rises and pressure to decarbonize the grid intensifies. Reliable, low-carbon baseload power is increasingly a policy priority, and advanced nuclear is one of the few technologies that can deliver it at scale.

The BPU may provisionally qualify projects

Here’s where things stand. Sherrill signed the Power NJ Act on July 13. The BPU now has 180 days to issue a request for expressions of interest from advanced nuclear developers, after which it may provisionally qualify projects and enter negotiations on cost, timeline, and siting.

The act creates a reliable capacity certificate program to financially support at least 1,100 MW of new capacity—though that number doesn’t lock the state into any specific procurement amount. Ratepayers won’t pay until a project is built and won’t be on the hook for construction overruns. The bill passed unanimously in both chambers. That’s a rare signal of unified political will behind New Jersey’s nuclear push.

Kelly Lippke

Kelly is an experienced writer with 15 years of experience exploring the big stories that shape our world, from tech breakthroughs and space exploration to climate, energy, and the fascinating quirks of science. She has a talent for turning complex ideas into sharp, memorable insights that stay with readers long after they’ve finished reading.