The USA’s Nuclear Weapons Will Cost Nearly $1 Trillion Over the Next Decade
America’s nuclear arsenal will cost $946 billion over the next decade, an estimated total that rose by 25% over the last two years.
Breaking Defense reported on this, citing a report from the U.S. Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
The total, covering operations, sustainment, and modernization for the years 2025-2034, comes out to an average of $95 billion per year.
The 25% cost increase from the previous edition, released in 2023, amounts to $190 billion. That change stems largely from the Congressional Budget Office estimating an increased cost on projects, including from the Sentinel ICBM effort, which Pentagon officials have said is 81% above its baseline cost estimate.
However, as the publication notes, some increased costs are the result of a two-year shift in the time period covered, as the previous report covered 2023-2025.
Funding for U.S. nuclear weapons comes from two main sources — the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Department of Energy.
The U.S. Department of Defense funds delivery systems, such as bombers and submarines, as well as supporting systems, while the Department of Energy, through the National Nuclear Security Administration, is responsible for managing and modernizing nuclear warheads.
Expenditures on nuclear weapons acquisition programs are expected to account for an average of 11.8% of the total procurement budget requested by the U.S. Department of Defense for the 2025 fiscal year.
The Congressional Budget Office total breaks down like this:
- $357 billion to “operate and sustain current and future nuclear forces and other supporting Activities”
- $309 billion to “modernize strategic and tactical nuclear delivery systems and the weapons they carry”
- $72 billion to “modernize facilities and equipment for the nuclear weapons laboratory complex”
- $79 billion to “modernize command, control, communications, and early-warning systems”
- $129 billion to “cover potential additional costs in excess of projected budgeted amounts estimated using historical cost growth.” While the other costs listed here are laid out in plans from DoD and DoE, this post of money is effectively CBO’s best guess at what cost overruns will likely look like.
The highest annual costs will hit just after the turn of the decade: Those percentages would rise “from 10.1% in 2025 to 13.2% in 2031 before steadily declining to 10.7 % by 2034,” per the report.
First are “Strategic nuclear delivery systems and weapons,” at $454 billion. That includes development of the submarines, bombers, and ICBMs, which can deliver nuclear weapons, as well as DoE funding for the warheads needed. “About half” of the costs here are for ballistic missile submarines, according to the report. Second is “Tactical nuclear delivery systems and weapons,” at $15 billion.
In October 2024, the U.S. Department of Defense signed a $2.1 billion contract with Lockheed Martin Space to produce and support Trident II D5 missiles and develop new W93 and Mk7 nuclear warheads.
