This week, Google and nuclear facility developer Elemental Power disclosed their collaboration on establishing three locations for next-generation nuclear reactors.
The technology firm has been hastening efforts to secure energy supplies due to its expanding AI initiatives, which are increasing power consumption at its data centers. This year, Google intends to allocate funds for such expenditures.
$75 billion
building data center capacity.
Under the new agreement, Google has committed to adding a minimum of 600 megawatts of generation capability at each of these three locations. Elemental stated that the reactors will be linked to the power grid with “the possibility for commercial uptake,” indicating that Google may purchase electricity directly.
Elementl had been functioning quietly up until this announcement. Although they haven’t built any power plants so far, their team boasts expertise in the nuclear sector. The venture was launched by Breakwater North and receives support from Energy Impact Partners.
Elementl is adopting a “technology-agnostic” strategy, indicating that it has not yet chosen which small modular reactor (SMR) firm it will collaborate with for project development. Several options exist; however, Kairos Power appears to be a strong favorite due to its
existing deal with Google
.
Kairos
says
its demo plant will generate 50 megawatts of electricity, with an eventual commercial plant producing 150 megawatts split between two reactors.
While there isn’t an official definition, small modular reactors (SMRs) generally have a maximum capacity around 300 megawatts. In contrast, the latest nuclear facility built in the U.S., Vogtle Unit 4 in Georgia, has a generating capability exceeding 1.1 gigawatts—almost quadruple the output of a typical big SMR.
Silicon Valley has fallen for Small Modular Reactors (SMRs). New companies are hurrying into this field, vowing to reduce reactor expenses by cutting costs through large-scale production facilitated by the reduced scale of SMRs. Additionally, the potential for constant power supply, which can be installed near data centers, has led these entities to enter into several agreements with SMR firms.
Oklo
,
X-Energy
, and the above-mentioned Kairos.
However, no SMR has been constructed outside of China yet. A start-up named NuScale has come near to building one, but it hasn’t succeeded so far.
suffered a setback
in 2023 when its utility partner canceled its contract after the estimated cost of the project more than doubled — even as the plans were downsized in an effort to contain costs.
