50 years is actually pretty good. Most coal and natural gas power generating facilities last about 30 years. Solar plants are closer to 20 years. Nuclear's pro

50 years is actually pretty good. Most coal and natural gas power generating facilities last about 30 years. Solar plants are closer to 20 years. Nuclear's problem in the US isn't so much the lifetime of a plant as the difficulty in constructing new plants and consignment of waste. There isn't much political will in either major US political party to allow these problems to be solved. As a result getting a new plant approved and constructed within a reasonable budget is close to impossible. Oil/natural gas companies hate them and environmentalist organizations hate them. The only real support nuclear has is the military because it's so useful for ships and submarines.