New nuclear units will be the focus of the power industry in 2008, with construction on some infrastructure beginning next year, more applications submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and firm commitments to new plants being made soon, utility executives said at the annual Power-Gen Interna­tional conference Dec. 11-14 in New Orleans.

Even Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric Power Co., a predominantly fossil-fuel based company, said during the conference that it will decide next year whether to pursue a combined construction and operating license (COL) for a new nuclear unit at a site yet to be identified.

“We are very focused on nuclear as a possibility. We intend on having pretty much a decision to file for a COL in the 2008 time frame” as a solution to lowering the company’s emissions of greenhouse gases, said Nicholas K. Akins, AEP’s executive vice president of generation. The company will only make a decision, not file a COL, next year, AEP spokesman Pat Hemlepp stresses.

Many companies have passed major milestones. On Dec. 13, Duke Energy, Charlotte, N.C., applied to NRC for two new units in Cherokee County, S.C. The company plans to build two Westinghouse AP1000 units on a greenfield site, generating a total 2,200 MW.

Duke’s COL application is the fourth this year, but there are no firm commitments or cost esti­mates. Each new reactor is expected to cost between $3 billion and $5 billion.

France-based Areva has applied for standard design certification for the U.S. EPR, a version of its European Power Reactor. Unistar Nuclear Energy, Baltimore, intends to build the first 1,600-MW U.S. EPR at Calvert Cliffs, Md. Unistar plans to complete its COL application in March 2008. It submitted a partial application covering the environmental portion in July.

Chicago-based Exelon has signed a multimillion-dollar order with GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy for large forgings and component fabrication for two 1,520-MW Econ­omic Simplified Boiling-Water Reactors. The company is considering two sites in Texas, and only recently announced it would use the GE-Hitachi reactor.