Global Nuclear Power Could More Than Triple by 2060, UN Says

CAMEROON – The use of nuclear power could more than triple by 2060, the head of the U.N. nuclear agency said Friday.

Rafael Grossi, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said in the agency’s annual report to the U.N. General Assembly that the projected growth will be fueled by electrification, artificial-intelligence data centers and technology companies’ demand for dependable, carbon-free electricity.

A growing number of countries view nuclear energy as essential to strengthening energy security, Grossi said. He described it as comparable to solar power and “safer than every other option.”

“In 2025, more than 400 operating reactors in more than 30 countries produced 10% of global electricity and a quarter of its low-carbon electricity,” Grossi said. More than 60 additional reactors are now being built, while forecasts for future nuclear capacity have risen sharply.

Alongside the expanding peaceful use of nuclear power, Grossi addressed nuclear programs in Iran and North Korea, “unprecedented threats to nuclear safety” posed by the war in Ukraine, and concerning reports that other unnamed countries are considering acquiring nuclear weapons.

Regarding Iran, whose nuclear facilities were hit by the United States last year before the U.S. and Israel launched a war on Feb. 28, Grossi told U.N. member states that the technical groundwork needed for a diplomatic agreement is in place.

“I call on the parties to redouble their efforts towards agreeing a diplomatic solution that includes the IAEA’s indispensable verification role, without which no agreement can be sustainable,” he said. Grossi added that IAEA inspectors must be allowed to return to Iran quickly, which would require the resumption of negotiations.

In North Korea, leader Kim Jong Un continues to expand the country’s nuclear program without IAEA oversight. Grossi said the situation “stands as a stark reminder of the consequences when red lines are crossed” in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions prohibiting nuclear weapons production.

Grossi also highlighted the precarious condition of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe. The facility has faced repeated power losses, limited diesel supplies for backup generators and military activity that threatens both the plant and its workers.

Grossi cited progress in Syria as a more positive development, saying the IAEA has made “significant progress” in addressing long-standing questions about the country’s nuclear activities. He attributed the gains to engagement with the government of interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa.

In September, Grossi said the government of Bashar Assad — ousted in December 2024 by opposition forces led by al-Sharaa — had been building a nuclear reactor configured to produce fissile material that could potentially be used in nuclear weapons.