The Atomic Energy Act retains an outdated restriction that prohibits foreign ownership, control or domination (FOCD) of commercial reactor licenses. Foreign companies have been able to make substantial investments in US commercial reactor assets, but because of the current restriction, they are effectively required to partner with a US company that exercises “control” over the assets.
This distorts the marketplace, where a premium is often placed on having the “control” of assets. Foreign companies cannot have “control” of reactor licenses, and therefore, the value of reactor licenses is distorted.