TerraPower and Bechtel will no longer work together on the next phase of the Natrium power plant in Kemmerer, Wyoming, after the two companies could not reach an agreement on terms. TerraPower said the split will leave the Kemmerer-1 schedule unchanged, with construction completion targeted for 2030 and commercial operation for 2031.
The change surfaced through a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed by Bechtel on September 15 with the Virginia Department of Workforce Development and Advancement. The notice lists about 200 positions that could be reduced on or about November 16 as Bechtel winds down its role. Bechtel said it is working with the state agency to find new assignments for affected employees and plans to move staff to other nuclear projects.
Bechtel will stay at the Kemmerer site to finish the Natrium sodium test and fill facility and to support an orderly transition. During the earlier project phase, the firm helped secure the Nuclear Regulatory Commission construction permit, the first issued for a commercial non-light water reactor in the United States, completed the exterior enclosure of the sodium test and fill facility, placed major procurements and began foundation work for Kemmerer Unit 1.
TerraPower said subcontractor teams and engineering, procurement and construction support firms already on site will keep construction moving. The company will rebid the EPC contract for Kemmerer-1 and has not named a replacement. Earlier this year TerraPower selected Hyundai Engineering and Construction as EPC contractor for up to eight of its 345 MWe sodium-cooled fast reactors. TerraPower broke ground in Kemmerer this spring on the first utility-scale plant of its design in the country.
Source: ANS Nuclear Newswire - https://www.ans.org/news/2026-09-21/article-8417/terrapower-bechtel-part-ways-on-natrium-project/