Micro nuclear reactors are being built that can deliver 5MW of power for up to 100 months, producing a staggering 1.2 petawatt-hours of energy

Nuclear power is increasingly being recognized for its potential to revolutionize energy supply in data centers, a necessity as artificial intelligence continues to drive demand.

Companies like Oracle and Microsoft have both begun investigating nuclear energy (as has former Microsoft chairman Bill Gates), with Microsoft inking an agreement to purchase power from the infamous Three Mile Island reactor.

Micro nuclear reactors are also set to provide clean, safe, and reliable energy to meet the increasing demands of data centers and other industries. We previously wrote how Nano Nuclear Energy is on track to have its first commercial microreactors ready by the early 2030s, with prototypes expected as soon as 2027.

To the moon!

Now, details have surfaced about Westinghouse's eVinci microreactor, after the company revealed it had submitted its Preliminary Safety Design Report (PSDR) to the Department of Energy’s National Reactor Innovation Center (NRIC) and in doing so is the first reactor developer to reach this milestone.

“The completion of the PSDR for the eVinci test reactor is an important step toward enabling a micro reactor developer to perform a test in our DOME facility,” said Brad Tomer, acting director of NRIC.

“As a national DOE program and part of INL, the nation’s nuclear energy research laboratory, NRIC is committed to working with private companies such as Westinghouse to perform testing and accelerate the development of advanced nuclear technologies that will provide clean energy solutions for the US.”

NRIC, a key initiative under the DOE, is dedicated to fast-tracking the development and deployment of advanced nuclear technologies like the eVinci microreactor. Its mission includes establishing four new experimental facilities and two large-scale reactor test beds by 2028, with plans to complete two advanced technology experiments by 2030.

The eVinci microreactor, which Westinghouse says “has very few moving parts, working essentially as a battery,” could be used to provide reliable electricity and heating for remote communities, universities, mining operations, industrial centers, data centers, and defense facilities - and, the company says, even on the lunar surface and beyond.

More from TechRadar Pro

• Bill Gates backed firm constructing 'affordable' nuclear power station
• Microsoft could be planning to run future data centers with nuclear power
• Micro nuclear reactors could cost as little as $20 million and launch by 2031

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