What is a suitable location for coal to nuclear?Īfter screening recently retired and active coal plant sites, a study by the U.S. PacifiCorp signed a memorandum of understanding exploring the placement of the Natrium reactors at the Hunter and Huntington coal-fired plants in Emery County, Utah, which was recently unveiled in its proposed long-range plans.
In addition, they are far less vulnerable to natural events like earthquakes or other disasters, according to the DOE.īill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft and the founder and chairman of TerraPower, is pursuing deployment of at least five more Natrium reactors in the West by 2035, including Utah. They occupy a much smaller footprint, can ramp up quickly or shut down with speed and use passive cooling systems. These are not your grandparents’ nuclear reactors. The Natrium technology is a 345- megawatt sodium fast reactor with molten salt energy storage. Department of Energy to demonstrate the technology of an advanced reactor. In the West, Wyoming is pursuing TerraPower’s Natrium reactor for a site at a retiring coal plant in Kemmerer, supported by funding from the U.S.
Facing political pressure and stringent new regulations for aging coal-fired power plants, many utility companies around the country are looking at the future with a new set of glasses that demands an alternative that will provide reliable, recurring power to the electrical grid.Įnter small nuclear reactors under development to provide base-load, carbon-free emissions to fill the gaps where intermittent renewable energy like wind and solar cannot.
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