TerraPower received a construction permit from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for its Natrium sodium-cooled fast reactor demonstration plant in Kemmerer, Wyoming, advancing the most prominent advanced reactor project in the United States toward the construction phase. The facility will have a generating capacity of approximately 345 megawatts, with a molten salt energy storage system that can boost output to 500 megawatts for up to five and a half hours during peak demand periods.
The Natrium reactor uses liquid sodium as a coolant rather than pressurized water, which simplifies the pressure management systems and allows the reactor to operate at higher temperatures. The design is intended to pair with renewable energy sources, using the molten salt storage system to absorb excess renewable generation and discharge it when wind and solar output is low.
The Department of Energy selected TerraPower to receive cost-share funding under the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, which was created to accelerate the commercialization of next-generation reactor designs. Total project costs are estimated at approximately $4 billion, with the DOE contributing approximately $2 billion and TerraPower and Pacificorp providing the remainder.
Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon has been a public supporter of the project, citing the facility's potential to provide the state with a long-term economic anchor as coal generation continues to decline. Kemmerer, a former coal mining town in southwest Wyoming, will host the plant on land adjacent to a retiring coal plant.
TerraPower was founded by Bill Gates in 2006. The company has been developing the traveling wave reactor concept for two decades, with the Natrium design emerging as the near-term commercial deployment path.
Source: TerraPower -- https://www.terrapower.com/our-work/natriumpower/