Pete Hegseth Orders Military Bases to Generate Own Power

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced during his September 30 State of the Force address that every major military installation in the United States will generate its own power independently of the civilian grid. Hegseth stated that "Every major military installation in America is going to generate its own power."

While the official announcement did not specify the technology, the initiative is expected to rely on the deployment of small modular nuclear reactors. The shift aims to increase military energy security while freeing up power capacity on the civilian grid, which may lower costs for ratepayers and improve energy access for data centers and hyperscalers.

Implementation of the project will likely require coordination between the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy. This partnership would be necessary to establish nuclear recycling processes and permanent geologic storage for spent fuel.