#Nuclear energy

#Nuclear energy

In recent years, particularly under the current administration as of early 2026, the U.S. government has shifted toward some direct equity investments and partnerships in strategic private companies, often framed as efforts to bolster national security, reduce reliance on foreign supply chains (especially from China), and support key industries like semiconductors and critical minerals. This approach has been likened across Wall Street to an informal "American sovereign wealth fund" and has led the government to acquire significant stakes in certain publicly traded firms.

In terms of making things happen, energy is an indispensable consideration. Systems spontaneously tend towards the lowest-energy state. When a system reaches equilibrium, no further energy can be extracted. That maximum entropy, lowest energy state is the inevitable end-state of the Universe. But until that moment arrives, reactions of all kinds will occur, continuing to liberate energy. In our bodies, chemical bonds break and reform: releasing energy.

This morning, the S&P 500 is up 17 points. The SPDR S&P 500 ( SPY) is up $2.55. The Dow is up about 100 points, as the tech-heavy Nasdaq tacks on 68 points. Most of these gains are attributed to speculation that job gains could prompt the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates. That was after the December jobs report showed slight weakening, but a stable jobs market that could push the Fed to cut again.

Speaking ahead of the meeting, Bardella told the BBC's Nick Robinson he believed the "extremely resilient" Reform UK leader would become the UK's next prime minister. The 30-year-old French MEP is leading in opinion polls to win the first round of the next presidential election due in 2027. A Reform source said the two politicians discussed small boat crossings and energy policy, particularly nuclear energy. Farage has in the past kept his distance from NR, the successor party to the National Front (FN), formerly led by Marine Le Pen.

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

He came to power in 2019, promising to tackle state corruption. But he's found himself this week, uncomfortably close to a $100m corruption scandal. A group of officials, government ministers and businessmen are accused of arranging kickbacks using the state nuclear energy firm. One of them is the co-owner of the television production company founded by Zelenskyy.

"Before 2022, there had been the optimistic hope we had gotten past an era where it's all about enlarging territory and invading sovereign countries and we could live happily in peace having trade," says Sari Multala, Finland's Minister of Climate and the Environment. "But then, we understood that was not the case and that we had to take care of our own sovereignty, also when it comes to energy. We cannot depend on a hostile partner," she told DW.

But if look beneath the surface retail investors on Reddit, X, and other forums are keeping their bullish tone. At least as of today, they're viewing the dip as a buying opportunity. While these groups can get a fever and momentum all their own the fundamental belief that nuclear energy is the comeback kid of 2025 and beyond seems valid.

It's the latest move by Google and other tech companies to revitalize nuclear energy in the US, which has struggled to compete with falling costs for gas, solar, and wind power over the years. As power grids scramble to keep up with growing electricity demand from AI, nuclear energy has become a more attractive option for generating carbon-free energy around-the-clock for data centers.

Qualcomm ( NASDAQ:QCOM) stands out as one of the lesser-appreciated semiconductor names as the AI revolution continues to play out, while other emerging tech trends also start to gain traction among growth and momentum-focused investors. Indeed, the AI race and the road towards AGI (or artificial general intelligence) seems to be on, with many hyperscalers signing deals or taking stakes in the great OpenAI, the firm that kicked off the AI boom when it unleashed ChatGPT to the world.

Those in France at least will now be partly powered via a CAPN, in addition to long-term Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) Data4 already has in place for solar and wind energy. The contract involves a "cost and risk-sharing mechanism" based on the actual volumes of energy produced - a so-called behind-the-meter arrangement where it can secure energy at a reduced cost over the long term.

Twelve thousand people are supposed to be attending Reform UK's party conference in Birmingham over three days this week (according to Reform at least), and Crossman is one of them. Their leader, Nigel Farage, has said it is ridiculous to refer to carbon dioxide as a pollutant and added: I can't tell you whether CO2 is leading to warming or not.

Going nuclear-free would undermine national security,