Washington DC - President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders Friday to boost nuclear energy in the US, including by rolling back regulatory processes on a still-divisive technology.

"We're signing tremendous executive orders today that really will make us the real power in this industry," Trump told reporters as he penned the four orders in the Oval Office.

Trump's orders aim to speed up the building of new reactors and to boost domestic mining and enrichment of uranium, with the US relying on imports for most of the crucial fuel.

The US president said the focus would be on building smaller reactors, such as those required by tech and artificial intelligence companies that have huge energy needs.

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The orders will also overhaul the US nuclear watchdog so that it pushes through decisions on building new reactors within 18 months, amid reports that the White House found the regulator too risk-averse.

Trump denied that speeding up the regulation process could compromise nuclear safety.

"We're going to get it very fast and very safe," Trump said. "It's time for nuclear, and we're going to do it very big."

The move comes with growing interest in nuclear energy in the US, despite being expensive to build and still politically sensitive in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima disaster.

"President Trump is taking truly historic action to usher in the American nuclear renaissance," Michael Kratsios, Director for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, told reporters earlier.

A senior White House official said the administration hopes to "test and deploy" new reactors before the end of Trump's second term in January 2029.