As Saudis Go Nuclear, U.S. Seeks an Edge Over Great-Power Rivals
- With China, Russia in wings, Trump is pressed to soften rules
- Westinghouse sees lifesaver but some worry about proliferation
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At a meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna last September, word spread that Saudi Arabia had identified a handful of countries that could build two nuclear reactors in the kingdom. The U.S. wasn’t among them -- until Energy Secretary Rick Perry buttonholed the Saudi delegates and told them America wanted in.
Within weeks, a mostly U.S. consortium headed by Westinghouse Electric Co. had joined the race. Its executives have visited the kingdom. So has Perry, whose intervention was described by two people who attended the meeting. In the next few months, the Saudis are expected to narrow the field to two or three bidders.