"New U.S. Nuclear Reactors Close To Construction -- S&P"

"For the first time in more than 30 years, the construction of new nuclear power plants is under way in the United States despite the ongoing nuclear crisis at Fukushima in Japan.

U.S. regulators are expected to approve of four new reactors later this year, but analysts at Standard & Poor's said in a call Wednesday the road ahead for other new nuclear plants in the country could prove difficult.

The accident at Tokyo Electric Power Co's (TEPCO) Fukushima plant in March will boost regulatory and operating costs for existing and new U.S. reactors, S&P said, but that alone will not prevent the construction of some new reactors."

Scott DiSavino reports for Reuters May 11, 2011. Standard & Poor's is one of the agencies that understated risks leading to the financial meltdown of 2009.

SEE ALSO:

"S&P's Credibility Under Fire As Agency Issues US Debt Warning" (ABC News)

"Credit and Credibility" (NOW/PBS)