[leonidasrup]

Building nuclear power plant underground could save significant costs, because the massive containment building is made from nuclear grade steel and nuclear grade concrete and is very expensive. But you need a low cost excavation technology.

https://ifp.org/nuclear-power-plant-construction-costs/

"Nuclear-grade components don’t necessarily have higher performance requirements than conventional components. Reinforcing steel in nuclear-grade concrete, for instance, is the same material used in conventional concrete. Instead, the additional cost often comes from the additional documentation and testing required. Documentation requirements also increase costs indirectly, by reducing market competition among manufacturers. Because these requirements are difficult for manufacturers to implement, many simply don’t bother to manufacture nuclear-grade components."

"Sources of Cost Overrun in Nuclear Power Plant Construction Call for a New Approach to Engineering Design"

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S254243512...

"Similarly, while our analysis identifies the rebar density in reinforced concrete as the most influential variable for cost decrease, changes to the amount and composition of containment concrete are constrained by safety regulations, most notably the requirement for containment structures to withstand commercial aircraft impacts. New plant designs with underground (embedded) reactors could allow for thinner containment walls. However, these designs are still under development and pose the risk of high excavation costs in areas or at sites with low productivity."