Who's going to pay the nuclear bill?

One big question standing in the way of new nuclear plants in the U.S. is who will cover the inevitable cost overruns, Jigar Shah tells Axios Pro.

Why it matters: Investors, tech firms, and the Trump administration have pledged to spend billions of dollars on new nuclear power plants — so far with little to show for it.

Driving the news: Shah, an energy investor and former Biden administration official, joined Axios Pro to discuss whether nuclear power press releases will turn into actual facilities.

What they're saying: When asked why demand for electricity alone isn't sufficient to justify the risk of these nuclear projects, Shah said the electric utilities have made it crystal clear that they have no appetite for risk.

• "They are not going to be the pathway by which we build these reactors, unless the federal government takes cost-overrun risk ... Will Meta or Microsoft or Google and others do it? They are willing to sign above-market power purchase agreements. They are not willing to take construction risk and cost-overrun risk."

Watch the entire interview