Projected nuclear power capacity globally 2050| ��ƽ��

Installed nuclear power generation capacity worldwide in 2024 with a forecast to 2050, by scenario (in gigawatts electric)

Characteristic	Low	High
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Release date

September 2025

More information

Region

Worldwide

Survey time period

2024

Special properties

* Forecast

Supplementary notes

According to the source, the low case scenario assumes that current market, technology, and resource trends will continue; few additional changes in laws, policies, and regulations concerning nuclear power will be made. No assumptions concerning targets for nuclear power are made.
The high case scenario takes into account existing policies as well as publicized intentions of individual countries regarding expansion of nuclear power use. While more ambitious, the high case projections are still plausible and technically feasible.

Citation formats

According to a recent forecast, global nuclear power capacity was projected to grow in the coming decades, with significant variations between low and high scenarios. While the low scenario predicted an increase of *** gigawatts electric between 2024 and 2050, the high scenario envisioned a more substantial expansion, reaching ****gigawatts electric by 2050.

Current nuclear energy leaders

In 2025, the Western European region currently led the industry in terms of nuclear power capacity, while the United States was the country with the highest combined capacity of nuclear power plants worldwide. The U.S. had approximately ** gigawatts electric installed across ** operating reactors; France and China followed with ** and ** gigawatts electric, respectively.

Future prospects in the nuclear energy sector

While nuclear capacity in Europe and the U.S. is forecast to decrease, China is rapidly expanding its nuclear capabilities. China's capacity is expected to nearly triple by 2050, reflecting a major shift in the global nuclear energy landscape. As of July 2024, China had the largest prospective capacity of nuclear power, totaling roughly *** gigawatts, with India following at ** gigawatts. This includes capacity under construction, pre-construction, and planned.