Commission still reviewing construction permit application for overall project
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued an exemption for TerraPower’s Natrium demonstration nuclear power plant project at Kemmerer in Wyoming allowing the company to progress certain “energy island” activities while regulators continue reviewing the construction permit application for the overall project.
The energy island will store excess heat to increase electricity output from the planned Natrium nuclear plant during high demand periods.
The NRC said allowing certain activities related to the energy island will not present an undue risk to public health and safety and that “special circumstances” are present.
It said the exemption covers a limited portion of structures, systems and components, enabling the project to proceed with activities including driving piles, installing foundations, or assembling, fabricating, or testing some structures, systems and components without a limited work authorisation.
The exemption will have no impact on its eventual decision on the construction permit for the reactor, the NRC said. “The NRC continues reviewing the construction permit application for the overall project,” a statement said.
TerraPower, founded by Bill Gates, said it was pleased with the decision, adding that decoupling the nuclear reactor from the energy generating facilities allows for shorter construction schedules and reduced material costs.
In February the US Department of Energy completed a final environmental assessment for preliminary activities at the project.
TerraPower, founded by Gates in 2008, broke ground in June 2024 for construction of its first commercial Natrium nuclear plant at Kemmerer, where a coal plant is shutting down.
The Natrium demonstration plant includes three separate project parts: a sodium test and fill facility, the power production or energy island, and the nuclear island with the reactor itself.
The initial construction will focus on the test and fill facility, a separate, non-nuclear building designed to serve as a testing site for the reactor’s sodium coolant system. It will handle the receipt, sampling, processing, and storage of liquid sodium before it is eventually delivered to the Natrium reactor.
