As we’ve reported, OPG is planning to build a total of four SMRs at the Darlington nuclear site and would use GE Hitachi’s BWRX-300 reactor technology. The four units once deployed would produce a total 1,200 MW of electricity.

In its latest filings, the provincial utility said it completed early-phase site preparation work for the first SMR and site clearing activities for the three planned additional SMRs in March 2024. Now, the project has commenced main site preparation activities.

OPG said the project completed the tunnel boring machine launch shaft retaining wall for the condenser cooling water system in June 2024. The company has now begun to drill for the reactor building shaft retaining wall. OPG is also planning for the procurement of long-lead items such as the fabrication of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV).

In October 2022, OPG submitted the License to Construct application to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) for the first SMR. In April 2024, Canadian regulators announced that the existing environmental assessment for the project is applicable to the BWRX-300 technology. The CNSC will hold a two-part second public hearing in October 2024 and January 2025 to consider OPG’s application.

Darlington refurbishment update

OPG also provided updates on the Darlington Refurbishment project, which began in 2016 to extend the lives of the station’s four units by at least 30 years. Refurbishment of Unit 2 was completed in June 2020, with Unit 3 completed in July 2023.

Work on Unit 1 began February 2022. In April 2024, OPG completed the lower feeder installation series and the lower body supports installation series for the Unit 1 refurbishment, signaling the end of reassembly. The loading of new fuel into the reactor was completed in May 2024.

The project is currently working to restore the reactor vault, which includes removing the bulkheads to reconnect Unit 1 back to the operating units. Vault restoration is on track for completion in August 2024. OPG said this would represent the completion of construction work and transition of the unit to start-up activities.

OPG said Unit 1 is expected to be returned to service by late 2024, ahead of its original schedule set for the second quarter of 2025.

Unit 4 refurbishment activities are currently in disassembly. The removal of the fuel channel assemblies is expected finished in the third quarter of 2024 with the removal of pressure tubes and calandria tubes. Refurbishment of Unit 4 is scheduled to be complete by the end of 2026.

OPG said the refurbishments of Units 1 and 4 incorporate the learnings from Units 2 and 3. The utility said it continues to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the project’s total cost, which is tracking toward its $12.8 billion budget.

In May 2024, OPG applied to renew the operating license for the Darlington GS for a period of 30 years beyond November 2025. The two-part public hearing is scheduled to be held by the CNSC in March 2025 and June 2025.

Westinghouse said this development allows better nuclear fuel efficiency, longer times between reactor refuels and lower operating costs.

U.S. pressurized water reactors currently operate on 18-month fuel cycles, and Westinghouse said this new higher burnup fuel will enable reductions in feed batch size, thereby improving fuel cycle economics. This is the first time nuclear fuel batch reloads in the United States will be able to exceed a burnup limit of 62 GWd/MTU.

“We are very pleased to receive approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for incremental burnup in our nuclear fuel,” said Tarik Choho, Westinghouse President of Nuclear Fuel. “This milestone marks the start of production of nuclear fuel with increased capacity for Pressurized Water Reactors, vastly improving fuel costs for U.S. utility customers.”

The incremental burnup approval also represents a milestone for the Encore Accident Tolerant Fuel Program, an initiative started in 2012 and funded by the Department of Energy, aimed at increasing performance and safety of nuclear reactors in support of U.S. energy security and climate goals.

Of the 650 MW announced during the second quarter of this year, 600 MW were for data center projects. Earlier this year, Oklo signed a pre-agreement with data center colocation company Equinix to provide up to 500 MW of nuclear power. The company has signed an LOI with Wyoming Hyperscale to deliver 100 MW through its data centers.

Another notable agreement could result in Oklo providing 50 MW of power to oil & gas company Diamondback Energy in the Permian Basin in Texas.

The company is working to convert these LOIs into power purchase agreements toward the end of this year and beginning of next, the company said in recent filings to the SEC.

Oklo is developing next-generation nuclear power plants called “powerhouses.”

The company’s Aurora powerhouse design is a fast neutron reactor that would transport heat from the reactor core to a power conversion system and is designed to run on material from used nuclear fuel known as HALEU, or “high assay, low-enriched uranium.” The reactor builds on the Experimental Breeder Reactor-II and space reactor legacy.

The Aurora powerhouse is designed to scale to 15 MW and 50 MW offerings today. Oklo is also evaluating a 100 MW or larger offering that we’re developing.

“We are targeting 15 and 50 megawatt ranges to start because based on the feedback we’ve seen from our customers, that’s a really great size range to be in to meet their needs,” said Oklo Founder and CEO Jacob DeWitte on this week’s earnings call.

DeWitte said the company can scale up with data center projects, which generally don’t come online all at once.

“We can build up to match where our customers are going as they grow their order book and their demand in a phased way, while also building an extra reactor that is providing power on standby for them when they need it,” he said.

Oklo’s first Aurora powerhouse is targeted for deployment in 2027 at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). Oklo obtained a site use permit from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for the INL site in 2019. The company applied with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in March 2020 to build and operate the INL reactor. This was the first combined license application ever accepted by the NRC for an advanced non-light water reactor.

In January 2024, the company announced that DOE had reviewed and approved the Safety Design Strategy (SDS) for its Aurora Fuel Fabrication Facility at INL. The Aurora Fuel Fabrication Facility is being designed to demonstrate the reuse of recovered nuclear material to support the reactor demonstration.

Oklo has also formed a non-binding strategic partnership with Atomic Alchemy, which aims to combine Oklo’s expertise in building and operating fast reactors and fuel recycling with Atomic Alchemy’s expertise in isotope production.

The company plans to build its second and third plants in southern Ohio, on land owned by the Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative (SODI). Earlier this year, Oklo entered into land agreements with SODI, which built on the companies’ initial agreement from May 2023.

The Ohio and Idaho projects are for powerhouses at the 15 MW size. But more recently, there has been more interest in the company’s 50 MW offering, Oklo officials said.

The fire, described as small by Georgia Power Co. spokesperson John Kraft, broke out about noon and could have threatened the electrical supply to the heating and cooling system for the control room of one of the complex’s two older nuclear reactors, Vogtle Unit 2.

The fire was put out by plant employees, Georgia Power officials said, and the alert ended just after 2:30 p.m. The cause of the fire hasn’t yet been determined, Kraft said.

Dave Gasperson, a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission spokesperson, said the fire was contained and did not affect any of the plant’s operating systems, and a backup power system remained available for the heating and cooling system. Gasperson said the commission’s onsite inspector monitored the situation and the commission, a federal agency which oversees nuclear power plants, is determining whether additional follow-up inspections are needed.

Officials said the fire caused no injuries and didn’t threaten the safety or health of employees or members of the public. All four of the nuclear reactors onsite continued to produce electricity at full power, Kraft said.

An alert is the second-least serious category of emergency out of four categories designated by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, an agency that oversees nuclear power plants. That category could reduce a plant’s level of safety but isn’t supposed to affect the public. The plant returned to normal operations after terminating the alert.

Georgia Power said workers are coordinating recovery with federal, state and local officials. Georgia Power owns the plant along with partners Oglethorpe Power Corp., Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and Dalton city utilities. It supplies electricity to almost all Georgians, as well as some utilities in Florida and Alabama.

The two older nuclear reactors were completed in 1987 and 1989. If they lose primary electricity from the outside grid, as well as backup electricity from a diesel generator, the reactors can overheat and melt down. A diesel generator was never needed Tuesday, Kraft said.

Vogtle’s two newer nuclear reactors are designed to avoid a meltdown from a power loss. Those reactors were completed this year and are the first new reactors built from scratch in the United States in decades. They cost the owners $31 billion, finishing seven years late and $17 billion over budget. Add in $3.7 billion that original contractor Westinghouse paid Vogtle owners to walk away from construction, and the total nears $35 billion.

Georgia Power is celebrating Generation Appreciation Month, a time to recognize the more than 1,100 team members who “work tirelessly in power plants across state to keep reliable energy flowing to the grid on hot summer days, cold winter mornings and every hour in between.”

“In life, as well as with Georgia Power’s power generation facilities, there is no one-size-fits-all option,” said Rick Anderson, senior vice president and senior production officer for Georgia Power. “From the existing facilities that have powered Georgia for decades, to newer sources of generation such as renewable energy, cleaner natural gas and battery storage, Georgia Power’s diverse generation mix continues to evolve to meet the needs of a growing Georgia. To keep the energy flowing, we need a workforce that is just as advanced and diverse.”

Based on available opportunities, a career in power generation offers many possibilities for those who join the team, Georgia Power said. Career paths exist in the areas of operations, maintenance, electrical, instrumentation, engineering and more. Last year, the company hired over 80 team members across generation facilities and expects the hiring trend to continue in the coming years. Strong training programs exist in Operations, along with apprenticeships in Mechanical and Electrical, which develop experienced journeymen who work safely to keep energy flowing to the grid, 24/7.

Georgia Power also highlighted the “continuous learning” it offers, including the Rockmart training facility where electrical, mechanical, and instrumentation and control technicians hone their skills each year. In 2023, this facility conducted nearly 3,000 hours of both hands-on and classroom instruction. Subject matter experts from both Southern Company and external entities visited to assist in this training program.

Constellation, which operates the largest nuclear fleet in the U.S., is working with data center customers on potential co-location deals, Dominguez said during the company’s second-quarter earnings call this week.

Data centers project to be significant drivers of growth in electricity demand. According to a study recently released by EPRI, data centers could consume up to 9% of U.S. electricity generation by 2030 — more than double the amount currently used.

“The simple fact is that data centers are coming, and they’re essential to America’s national security and economic competitiveness,” said Dominguez.

The rapidly growing data center industry has sparked an active and even divisive discussion among policymakers and stakeholders about how to powering them.

Notably, Exelon and American Electric Power (AEP) are protesting a proposal that would result in the co-location of an Amazon Web Services (AWS) data center at Talen Energy’s Susquehanna nuclear plant in northeast Pennsylvania.

In a filing to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) last month, the parties said the proposed Interconnection Service Agreement (ISA) raises unresolved questions and could result in unfair cost burdens on ratepayers and negatively impact market operations and reliability.

FERC is now seeking more information about the amended ISA. Last week the federal agency called for a technical conference in the fall to discuss co-locating large loads like data centers with generators.

Constellation (a former Exelon entity) believes co-location allows significant new load to be served without requiring expensive system upgrades, especially when grid operators are struggling to integrate new resources faster.

“Friday’s actions at FERC may have slowed things, but ultimately will be constructive in our view,” said Dominguez on the investor call. “We think the benefits [of co-location] are compelling.”

In terms of any co-location deals of its own, Dominguez said Constellation wouldn’t be timebound by any FERC rulemaking on the Talen ISA. He did acknowledge a tightening in the market and more urgency for participants to lock up supply.

“We independently are working on contractual provisions that will allow us to manage whatever outcome comes out of those proceedings,” he said.

Dominguez noted PJM Interconnection’s latest capacity auction, which saw energy prices skyrocket more than 800%. Insufficient future transmission planning, the retirement of fossil-fired generation, long interconnection queues and the implementation of FERC market reforms are all contributing to the hikes.

The auction sends a build signal to generators, but Dominguez said nuclear power specifically could emerge a winner from PJM’s skyrocketing prices. Constellation operates eight nuclear plants (16 reactors) in PJM territory.

“We expect to see higher sustained pricing for capacity to address reliability needs and send more accurate price signals to retain, operate and relicense our plants,” he said.

Meanwhile, PJM utilities have now identified at least 50 GW of expected data center load growth, Dominguez reported.

He said despite disagreement on the vehicle to power data centers, there is a great opportunity for Constellation to work with utilities to bring both grid-connected and co-located projects along.

“We’re still fairly early innings in terms of understanding all of the different use cases and how our resources will interact with the grid,” he said.

The test cell will be used to observe the “complex chemistry” that can occur in molten salt fueled reactors, ORNL said, and its data will be used to help verify existing computer codes and modeling software to better predict the reactors’ overall performance.

Molten salt reactors (MSRs) are still under development, but could be commercialized “early next decade,” ORNL said. Some MSR designs are intended to operate on liquid fuel, with fissile materials directly dissolved into a molten salt solution that can also cool the reactor.

However, the nuclear and chemical reactions that result can cause gases to bubble out of the molten salt, which runs the risk of impacting reactor neutronics and thermal hydraulic performance, ORNL said. The new glass test cell is meant to help researchers better understand this behavior.

The glass test cell can hold up to one liter of liquid molten salt. The ORNL team injected small helium and krypton bubbles into the cell to observe how they moved. ORNL said this experiment allowed researchers to observe and measure gas bubble velocity, size distribution and interactions with neighboring bubbles using high-speed cameras.

“Understanding gas generation and transport in molten salt reactors is essential to optimizing their performance and safety,” said Daniel Orea, ORNL’s lead R&D associate. “This unique glass test cell allows us to overcome certain engineering challenges caused by the high temperature and composition of salt and its two-phase liquid glass system.”

The research project was supported through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Molten Salt Reactor Program that works to accelerate the research, development, and deployment of molten salt reactor technologies in the United States.

Read more details on the experiment and glass test cell here.

Blue said the company will “continue to explore that option” after being asked on the call, NBC Philadelphia reported, but it understands that “any co-location option is going to have to make sense for us, our potential counterparty and stakeholders in Connecticut.”

Millstone power station has 2,100 MW of generating capacity. Unit 1 was commissioned in 1970 and closed more than 10 years ago. Units 2 and 3 are licensed through 2035 and 2045, respectively.

In 2022, Connecticut state legislators passed a bill that would exempt the Millstone facility from a construction moratorium. The measure would allow the option of on-site expansion at the site.

Generally, the state’s moratorium prohibits new construction on new nuclear facilities until the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency find that the federal government has identified and approved a way to dispose of nuclear waste. Lawmakers spoke favorably about the growth and potential of small modular reactors (SMRs) – Dominion indicated it supported the bill but had no plans to add an SMR at the Millstone site “as their commercial viability is still many years away.”

Earlier this year, Blue said Dominion is receiving requests to power larger data center campuses that require total capacity ranging from 300 MW to as many as “several gigawatts.”

The statement is another reflection of the significant load growth in Dominion’s territory that has accelerated in recent years, largely driven by data centers and their AI computing needs. Dominion has connected 94 data centers totaling over four GW of capacity over the last approximately five years, Blue told investors. The utility’s territory includes Northern Virginia, which is the largest and most dynamic data center market in the world.

Blue said the utility expected to connect an additional 15 data centers in 2024.

Dominion has not only seen a larger number of data center customer requests in recent years, but the size of each facility request (in terms of MW) has grown larger. Blue said historically, a single data center had a demand of 30 MW or more. More recent requests indicate a demand of 60-90 MW, or greater. Now, he said data center campuses with multiple buildings could require several gigawatts.

In the U.S. alone, data center demand is expected to reach 35 GW by 2030, up from 17 GW in 2022, McKinsey & Company projects. Grid operators and utilities are projecting significant load growth driven by electrification, new manufacturing, and data center development. This is especially true throughout the PJM Interconnection. Dominion Energy’s service territory is located within the PJM footprint.

According to the company’s annual report filed with regulators earlier this year, data centers represented 24% and 21% of Dominion’s electricity sales in 2023 and 2022, respectively.

The two-unit nuclear plant, located in Somerville County, Texas, has a capacity of 2,400 MW. Construction of the two Westinghouse pressurized water reactors began in 1974. The plant began operating in 1990. The company submitted its application for license renewal with the NRC in October 2022.

Vistra said the license renewal is important as the country faces demand growth while transitioning to cleaner sources.

“With demand for electricity growing at a rapid pace, reliable sources of power, like Comanche Peak, are going to be absolutely essential to meeting that need,” said Jim Burke, president and chief executive officer of Vistra.

Comanche Peak is the third of Vistra’s four nuclear plants to receive its license extension from the NRC.

Comanche Peak units 1 and 2 can now operate through 2050 and 2053, respectively. The company’s Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Plant units 1 and 2 in Pennsylvania are licensed through 2036 and 2047, and Davis-Besse in Ohio is licensed through 2037. Perry Nuclear Power Plant in Ohio filed its application for renewal in 2023 and is currently in the NRC review process.

The Beaver Valley, Davis-Besse and Perry Nuclear power plants came from Vistra’s acquisition of Energy Harbor, which was approved by FERC in February. Vistra originally announced the $3.4 billion purchase in March 2023. It includes a 4,000 MW nuclear generation fleet and retail business of nearly 1 million customers.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued a construction permit to Kairos Power for the Hermes reactor in December 2023. Kairos’ reactor uses molten salt for cooling and is the first non-light-water reactor to be permitted in the U.S. in over 50 years.

Kairos Power said Barnard Construction Company began to perform site work earlier this month at the Hermes site. Barnard and Kairos Power have also started collaborating to build the third Engineering Test Unit (ETU 3.0)—a non-nuclear demonstration co-located in Oak Ridge that will generate supply chain, construction and operational experience to inform the Hermes project.

Both Hermes and ETU 3.0 will be built using modular construction techniques piloted at Kairos Power’s testing and manufacturing campus in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Reactor modules will be fabricated in Albuquerque and shipped to Oak Ridge for assembly, demonstrating the potential of a factory-built small modular reactor design to transform conventional nuclear construction.

The project aims to be operational in 2027. Hermes’ primary objective will be to demonstrate Kairos Power’s ability to produce affordable nuclear heat. Hermes will not produce electricity.

However, Kairos Power aims to develop a larger version for commercial electricity that could be used in the early 2030s. It says the construction permit is a big step forward as it works to deploy clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy.

Hermes is a joint effort by Kairos Power and its partners, including Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Idaho National Laboratory, EPRI, and Materion Corporation. In addition, Kairos Power is partnering with Los Alamos National Laboratory to produce TRISO pebble fuel for Hermes in the lab’s Low-Enriched Fuel Fabrication Facility.​

Kairos Power has also established a cooperative development agreement with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to provide engineering, operations, and licensing support for Hermes.