Nuclear Summer

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Designers of new plants in nuclear-friendly regions say they can now minimize that construction risk. Much like the so-called cookie-cutter model in France, where nuclear power accounts for 80% of the electricity, any new generation of nuclear plant in the U.S. would have to be based on a standard design instead of the current hodgepodge of complicated configurations. Westinghouse Electric's new, simplified unit, for instance, is modular and can practically be put together on an assembly line, relying more on natural forces like gravity and less on moving parts.

Sounds great in theory. But as Exelon Nuclear chief Oliver Kingsley puts it, "I do think Wall Street will be a little skeptical until we have a bit of a track record." It had better not be anything like their previous one, or nuclear power won't stay hot for very long.

--With reporting by Hilary Hylton/Austin, David S. Jackson/Los Angeles and Michael Weisskopf and Adam Zagorin/Washington