Mini réacteurs nuke / Bill Gates et TOSHIBA / TerraPower

[energy_isere]

Curtiss-Wright wins Natrium contracts

27 February 2025

Curtiss-Wright Corporation has been awarded two contracts to design and supply plant simulation and digital control solutions for TerraPower's Natrium advanced nuclear reactor.


The contracts cover the design and delivery of the Training Simulator and the Distributed Control System for the Natrium plant. The Training Simulator is a full-scope simulator that will replicate plant equipment and simulate system conditions and operations to support operator training and licensing. The Distrbuted Control System is a digital platform that serves as a core component for automating control and operation of plant processes.

The company has also been selected to develop control systems for the plant's nuclear island and its energy island. Previously, Curtiss-Wright has been selected to develop the Reactor Protection System for the Natrium plant, and the software platform and engineering services for the Natrium Engineering Simulator.

The Natrium reactor is a 345 MW sodium fast reactor coupled with a molten salt energy storage system and can simultaneously both carbon-free electricity, heat and steam to support decarbonisation of power and industrial sectors. The first reactor is being built in Kemmerer, Wyoming and TerraPower experts its first Natrium plant to be on line in 2030.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/arti ... -contracts

[energy_isere]

TerraPower welcomes new investors to support SMR plans

Thursday, 19 June 2025

The venture capital arm of multinational technology company NVIDIA is among investors in the USD650 million capital raise, which TerraPower says will support the first Natrium plant as well as the company’s plans to rapidly deploy additional units in the US and abroad.


NVentures, the venture capital arm of NVIDIA, was among new investors that took part in the fundraise, which closed on 18 June, TerraPower said. Current investors, including TerraPower-founder Bill Gates and South Korean conglomerate HD Hyundai, have also participated.

"TerraPower was founded on the idea that innovation in nuclear science could make positive, global impacts. This round further establishes that our technologies are the solutions that industry is looking for," TerraPower President and CEO Chris Levesque said. "We are proud to have NVIDIA join our visionary group of investors."

“As AI continues to transform industries, nuclear energy is going to become a more vital energy source to help power these capabilities,” Corporate Vice President and Head of NVentures Mohamed Siddeek said. “TerraPower's nuclear reactor technologies offer innovative, carbon-free solutions to meet global energy needs while minimising environmental impact.”

In March, TerraPower announced a strategic collaboration with HDHyundai affiliate HDHyundai Heavy Industries to expand the global manufacturing supply chain for Natrium small modular reactors, supporting the rapid commercialisation of the technology. In 2024, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries was competitively selected by TerraPower to develop the cylindrical reactor vessel to be installed in the first Natrium reactor.

Natrium technology features a 345 MWe sodium-cooled fast reactor using high-assay low-enriched uranium fuel, with a molten salt-based energy storage system that can boost the system's output to 500 MWe for more than five and a half hours when needed. The company began non-nuclear construction activities on the site of the first Natrium plant, at Kemmerer in Wyoming, last year and said it expects to get regulatory approval for the nuclear reactor next year.

As part of the permitting process for the Kemmerer plant, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission this week issued a draft environmental impact statement for public comment with a deadline of 4 August.

TerraPower said it will continue to be a privately held company, and did not disclose further terms of the fundraise.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/arti ... -smr-plans