For utilities, developers, and original equipment manufacturers weighing where federal capital will flow, the office’s first-year record offers the clearest signal yet. Beard credited the law with refocusing federal energy lending on baseload power, critical mineral supply chains, and nuclear. The centerpiece is a $26.5 billion loan package closed in February—the largest in DOE history—supporting two wholly owned subsidiaries of Southern Company. The Nuclear Supply Chain RebuildThe office’s most ambitious commitment targets the nuclear supply chain rather than any single plant. For project sponsors, the message is unambiguous: federal lending capacity is abundant, but it now runs through a narrow gate.