It is nearly impossible to imagine meeting local, regional and even global energy demands without nuclear energy. Data processing, high-tech manufacturing and cryptocurrency infrastructure are among just a few of the major drivers necessitating greater commitment to nuclear power, and here in New York, especially in Oswego County, we have a tremendous opportunity to blaze a trail in this space.

Micron Technology’s plan to build a semiconductor complex near Syracuse is among the most important economic development investments Central New York has seen in decades. Micron presents an incredible opportunity for upstate as the complex is expected to attract major job growth and investment in the region. However, Micron and other organizations like it are going to need to power their operations, and current conditions would make that extremely challenging, if not impossible. For example, reports indicate electricity demand from the project would top that of New Hampshire and Vermont combined.

Considering this reality, Gov. Kathy Hochul, rightly, instructed the New York Power Authority (NYPA) to develop a plan to facilitate the generation of 1 gigawatt of advanced nuclear energy. Yesterday was the final day for communities to pitch NYPA on why they are best suited to host a plant capable of such generation. I believe Oswego County would be an ideal location to site that plant, and I have said as much since preliminary plans were announced.

Oswego County offers several key advantages over other regions with respect to locating a potential plant. Thanks to the infrastructure already in place to support the Nine Mile power station, Oswego County already has an abundance of power lines, waste storage, cooling capacity and skilled regional workers to support another facility.

Outside of the obvious inherent advantages to the area, there is also a lot of interest from local government and business leaders in pursuing this project. When a community speaks up this fervently, it’s usually a good idea to listen. This power plant would not only support Micron and its adjacent businesses but also generate its own tax and job benefits. Simply put, we want this project, and we are ideally suited to enable its success.

A bolstered nuclear energy portfolio is becoming increasingly necessary in New York, especially if we are going to continue to attract large-scale buy-in from companies like Micron. I strongly urge local officials, business leaders and clean energy advocates to speak up as this process unfolds. This project needs the right place and the right people to make it work; we have both.