Terrestrial Energy, a small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) power developer, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with EnergySolutions to collaborate on the siting and deployment of Integrated Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) plants at EnergySolutions-owned sites.
According to the partners, the MoU was driven by the rising interest in the SMR market, primarily from data centers.
“This year, we have observed a rapid increase in anticipated demand growth for clean, firm heat and power-driven by significant load-growth from key sectors, such as data centers supporting AI operations and industrials seeking distributed clean energy solutions to achieve their strategic goals,” said Ken Robuck, CEO of EnergySolutions.
Under the terms of the MoU, the partners have assessed three sites acquired by EnergySolutions in June 2023 and will explore the deployment of ISMRs. The sites include the decommissioned Kewaunee Nuclear Power Station in Carlton, Wisconsin.
“We look forward to collaborating with EnergySolutions and other project consortium parties, including those interested in offtake agreements for clean, firm power and heat at gigawatt-scale, as well as project partnerships with state and federal governments,” said Simon Irish, CEO of Terrestrial Energy.
IMSRs’ are Generation IV reactors that promise much higher capacity and efficiency factors than Generation III SMRs. However, due to the novel nature of their cooling system and lack of real-world test cases, there is concern over their long-term scalability.
Earlier this year, Terrestrial Energy signed an MoU with Schneider Electric to support the development of its 190MW ISMR. The companies will jointly develop commercial opportunities and advance the deployment of IMSR plants. Terrestrial aims to commission its first IMSR power plants in the early 2030s.
Several high-profile data center operators signed SMR supply agreements in 2024, fueling renewed interest in the sector.
Oklo has signed four deals in the sector. Last month, partnered with two undisclosed data center providers to deliver up to 750MW of power. This followed previous agreements with Equinix and Prometheus for 500MW and 100MW of nuclear power, respectively.
In October, AWS signed three agreements with Energy Northwest, X-Energy, and Dominion Virginia to support the deployment of more than 600MW of power across Washington and Virginia.
Before this, Google signed a corporate agreement to purchase nuclear energy from multiple SMRs from Karios Power, with an expected deployment date in 2030. The supplier Kairos recently received construction permits from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for its Hermes Two Demonstration Plant at the Heritage Center Industrial Park in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
