Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) have emerged as one of the most promising solutions to the world's clean energy challenges, attracting billions in investment and unprecedented attention from tech giants desperate to power the AI revolution. With factory fabrication promising lower costs and faster deployment than traditional nuclear plants, SMRs are positioning themselves at the intersection of energy security, climate action, and the digital economy.
SMR Technology Leaders
- NuScale: Only SMR with full NRC certification (77 MWe design)
- TerraPower: 345 MWe Natrium reactor, operation target 2030
- X-energy: TRISO fuel Xe-100 with Amazon partnership
- NuScale + ENTRA1/TVA: 6 GW deployment program (largest in U.S. history)
- Capital costs: $3,000-6,000/kW for first-of-a-kind
The Technology Landscape
NuScale Power remains the only SMR technology to receive design approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, achieving its second certification in June 2025 for the uprated 77 MWe design. Each NuScale Power Module can generate 77 megawatts of electricity or 250 megawatts thermal, with configurations scaling up to 924 MWe using 12 modules.
TerraPower, founded by Bill Gates, is developing the Natrium sodium-cooled fast reactor offering 345 MWe with the capability to peak at 500 MWe through molten salt storage. The company broke ground in June 2024 near Wyoming's retiring Naughton coal plant, with NRC approval expected by December 2026.
X-energy's Xe-100 high-temperature gas-cooled reactor uses TRISO fuel that cannot melt down, making it inherently safer than conventional designs. The company secured a landmark Joint Development Agreement with Centrica in September 2025 to deploy up to 12 reactors in the United Kingdom.
Big Tech's Nuclear Pivot
The AI industry's insatiable power demands have accelerated nuclear adoption:
- Google: 500 MW deal with Kairos Power
- Amazon: Over $20 billion in nuclear partnerships including X-energy
- Oracle: 1 GW data center campus powered by three SMRs
- Meta: 6.6 GW nuclear strategy for AI data centers
- Microsoft: $16 billion Three Mile Island restart deal with Constellation
Global Developments
Canada achieved a major milestone when Ontario Power Generation received construction approval for a GE Hitachi BWRX-300 at the Darlington site in April 2025. This CAD 7.7 billion project targets operation by 2029. Romania plans to deploy NuScale's six-module VOYGR plant by 2029, becoming the first European nation with an operational SMR.
The UK has invested £280 million in Rolls-Royce's 470 MW SMR design, matched by private investment. The path to commercial deployment remains challenging, but the convergence of climate imperatives, energy security concerns, and AI power demands has created unprecedented momentum.
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