REM: Innovative Bill Gates-backed small nuclear plant breaks ground

TerraPower, financially backed by tech mogul Bill Gates, has broken ground on its novel Natrium nuclear reactor plant in Wyoming in the US. The plant is expected to come online in about 2030.  

The demonstration project will include a 345-MW sodium-cooled fast reactor and a molten salt-based energy storage system. It is the first advanced non-light water nuclear reactor project yet to move from a design into a construction phase.

“This groundbreaking represents the beginning of the next era of nuclear energy,” said Chris Levesque, TerraPower president and CEO. “The Natrium reactor is more than a design, it’s a plant coming to life that will support both the clean energy transition and our historic energy communities.”