1. ClearPath in California: visiting Kairos Power
ClearPath + Per Peterson, Kairos’ Chief Nuclear Officer and Co-Founder at Kairos Power Headquarters in California
Last week, ClearPath visited Kairos Power’s Headquarters in Alameda, California, to see nuclear innovation firsthand. It is important to us to be on the ground with the amazing minds bringing innovative American tech to life so that we can then better understand what policy is needed to keep them on track to commercialization.
Kairos Power:
- Is currently building its first demonstration plant, supported by an Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) award for Risk Reduction, in Oak Ridge, TN to support rapid deployment scale-up in the 2030s.
- Leads as the first to obtain a construction permit.
- Uses a novel advanced reactor technology known as…
…the Kairos Power FHR (KP-FHR), which leverages TRISO fuel pebbles and a fluoride-salt coolant. This allows the reactor to operate more efficiently at low pressures, significantly reducing operational risks.
Thank you for hosting us!
ClearPath team touring Kairos' Rapid Analysis, Prototyping, and Iterative Design Lab
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2. Michigan nuclear plant making its comeback
In Michigan, the Palisades nuclear power plant closed in 2022, but is aiming to reopen due to surging electricity demand.
- The federal government and Michigan are investing nearly $2 billion.
- Palisades would be the first decommissioned nuclear plant in the U.S. to be put back to work.
- The 800 MWe plant can power over half a million homes and employed about 600 staff when it was operational.
What’s clear: The U.S. needs more power and nuclear is a great option. There are currently 94 reactors in the U.S., working to power one-fifth of the U.S. grid. Michigan is expected to see increasing power demand from new advanced manufacturing facilities.
Plug in: Check out this Wall Street Journal article detailing the full story.
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3. Jeremy Harrell in American Affairs: all about innovation
ClearPath CEO, Jeremy Harrell was featured in the American Affairs Journal Fall 2024 Issue for his take on “An Innovation Agenda for the Department of Energy.”
Harrell outlines:
- Past success stories, including the U.S. shale gas boom from hydraulic fracturing;
- The role of energy innovation and recent Congressional support; and
- Opportunities for the next presidential administration.
What’s clear: “As the world enters this new phase of energy growth, one thing is certain: the United States must lead the world and pioneer the technologies to make it possible,” said ClearPath CEO Jeremy Harrell.
Plug in: Read more about America’s world-class energy innovation possibilities in the full edition here.
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4. NEW Podcast: Direct air capture convos
ClearPath's Senior Program Director for Carbon Management & Science, Hillary O'Brien recently spoke on the USEA’s Power Sector Podcast with journalist Herman K. Trabish to discuss:
- Direct air capture (DAC) and other carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies;
- Its costs and challenges; and
- Its role in the carbon management ecosystem.
What’s clear: “Globally, these CDR technologies, including DAC, could remove 10 billion tons of carbon per year by 2050, and for the U.S., 2 billion a year alone, and 20 billion by 2100,” said O’Brien.
Plug in: Listen to the full podcast here.
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5. Meta to power data center with geothermal
Houston-based geothermal startup Sage Geosystems announced a major agreement with Meta to build a 150MW geothermal power plant to meet energy needs related to data center demand.
- Sage leverages technology from the oil and gas industry to unlock geothermal heat.
- Located “east of the Rocky Mountains,” with a final location TBD, this announcement shows enhanced geothermal is possible anywhere in the U.S.
- This is Sage’s 2nd deployment, following plans to build a geothermal energy storage facility with San Miguel Electric Cooperative, Inc. in South Texas.
What’s clear: Energy buyers are turning to enhanced geothermal technologies to meet their growing needs. ClearPath recently met with Google to discuss their plans to build toward a 24/7 carbon-free energy portfolio, which included their partnership with Fervo and NV Energy to power a data center in Nevada. Read more.
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6. ClearPath at DAC Camp
This week ClearPath’s Senior Program Manager of Carbon Management Savvy Bowman is pictured at Carbon Engineering’s direct air capture “DAC Camp” in Squamish, British Columbia, Canada, which:
- Provided a first-hand experience with this technology at the Carbon Engineering Innovation Center (CEIC);
- Brought continued transparency to the conversation; and
- An inside look at future paths forward to commercialization of DAC technologies.
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7. Accelerating nuclear in Tennessee
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) board of directors has approved an additional $150 million in funding for continued design work and development of potential small modular reactors at TVA’s Clinch River site near Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has previously approved an Early Site Permit (ESP) at the Clinch River site, meaning that the site is suitable for building a new reactor on it, putting a future project ahead in the licensing process.
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8. ICYMI
- DOE Office of FECM announced up to $127.5 million in funding to test carbon capture, removal and conversion at cement manufacturing facilities and power plants.
- BWXT secured a contract to advance to the next phase of an NNSA project to construct a Domestic Uranium Enrichment Pilot Plant.
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