DOE taps two new nuclear reactor designs for development funding

Dive Brief:

The Department of Energy has selected two companies to develop new types of advanced nuclear reactors, potentially investing up to $160 million in technologies that could help meet new, more stringent emissions regulations, Greentech Media reports.
X-energy will work to develop the Xe-100 Pebble Bed Advanced Reactor, which has more advanced safety features and is smaller than traditional reactors, and could also be appropriate for a wider range of communities.
Southern Company Services will partner with Oak Ridge National Laboratory to develop a Molten Chloride Fast Reactor, which DOE said is another next generation, highly-safe reactor design.

Dive Insight:

DOE's announcement last week is another sign that nuclear power may be heading for a resurgence, but it is likely to be much smaller in scale. Federal lawmakers and officials are considering development of small nuclear reactors, typically under 300 MW, and DOE will spend more than $450 million to get licensing of the smaller facilities up and running.

The federal grants have a multi-year cost share of up to $80 million for both companies. The DOE said it will support work to address key technical challenges to the design, construction, and operation of next generation nuclear reactors.

“In order to ensure that nuclear energy remains a key source for U.S. electricity generation well into the future, it is critically important that we invest in these technologies today,” Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz said in a statement. “Public-private partnerships to develop advanced nuclear capabilities will enable low-carbon nuclear energy to power America for years to come.”

DOE noted that nuclear power remains a "critical energy source" for the United States, accounting for almost 20% of the nation's generation and 60% of its carbon free power.

The awards to X-energy and Southern Company Services come as part of the government's new Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear initiative, announced last fall. "GAIN provides the nuclear energy community with access to the technical, regulatory, and financial support necessary to accelerate the commercialization of advanced nuclear energy systems," DOE said.

X-energy will be partnering with BWX Technology, Oregon State University, Teledyne-Brown Engineering, SGL Group, Idaho National Laboratory, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, on the pebble bed reactor. Southern Company Services partmners include TerraPower, Electric Power Research Institute, Vanderbilt University, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Meanwhile, the Hill reports that the House Science, Space and Technology Committee approved a bipartisan bill last week aimed at bolstering research and development funding for nuclear energy by allowing private firms to partner with federally-run National Labs for research. It also calls for the DOE to finish a nuclear reactor over the ten years. Both sides of the aisle touted the bill as a way to prioritize and expand nuclear power in the U.S., but Greentech Media suggests that the regulatory challenge for advanced reactors may be a bigger hurdle than finance or the physics.