Nuclear

“We just want to push action”: Startup announces plans to develop 6 GW nuclear fleet

The Nuclear Company will initially prioritize sites which have U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensing.
“We just want to push action”: Startup announces plans to develop 6 GW nuclear fleet
(The Fermi Nuclear Generating Station, located on Lake Erie in Monroe County, Michigan. Image by Flickr.)

The Nuclear Company has come out of stealth mode with plans to build a fleet of nuclear power plants in the U.S.

Citing an unprecedented surge in U.S. energy demand driven by AI and data centers, electrification and onshoring manufacturing, the startup is thinking big.

The Nuclear Co. wants to develop a 6 GW fleet by the mid-2030s.

“It’s a moonshot goal,” said Juliann Edwards, Chief Development Officer for the company. “I think you’re going to see the industry excited to lean into a whole new disruption and concept of how we build nuclear.”

The Nuclear Co. wants to re-define how large-scale nuclear infrastructure projects are delivered. The company would work as a project developer, collaborating with private equity, hyperscalers, utilities, independent power producers and nuclear technology suppliers to execute fleet-scale projects.

The result is a framework where risk and value is spread more evenly among the partners, Edwards said.

“We’re going to build a partnership to where one entity does not have to take that burden,” she said.

The developer said its model combines using “proven, licensed technology and a design-once, build-many approach.”

“I think what’s making us different is we’re not focused on the technology,” said Edwards, in an interview with Power Engineering. “We’re focused on leveraging what’s already been done, and just getting a shovel in the ground as quickly as possible.”

Specifics on technology and design would be released later in the year, she said.

In building this nuclear fleet, the startup will prioritize sites with U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensing, including an active combined operating license, early site permit or limited work authorization.

“We just want to push action,” Edwards said.

Early investors in The Nuclear Company include CIV, True Ventures, Wonder Ventures, Goldcrest Capital and MCJ Collective.

Nuclear power has seen renewed interest in recent years with utilities, regulators and the general public.

Earlier this month President Joe Biden signed legislation aimed at accelerating new nuclear reactors in the U.S.

The ‘‘Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy Act of 2024,” or ADVANCE Act, aims to speed up permitting and create new incentives for the buildout of advanced reactors.

The act would direct the NRC to find ways to speed up its licensing process for new nuclear technology. The legislation would also reduce regulatory costs for companies seeking to license these new reactor technologies, as well as direct the NRC to enhance its ability to qualify and license accident-tolerant fuels and advanced nuclear fuels.