Edition: International | Greek
MENU

Home » Analyses

Bill Gates’ nuclear venture plans small reactors to complement solar, wind power

A nuclear energy venture founded by Bill Gates said Thursday (27 August) it hopes to build small advanced nuclear power stations that can store electricity to supplement grids increasingly supplied by intermittent sources like solar and wind power

By: EBR - Posted: Friday, August 28, 2020

Nuclear power is a top source of virtually emissions-free electricity, but many plants are shutting in the United States because of high costs and competition from solar and wind. Critics of advanced nuclear have also warned that smaller nuclear is even more expensive than conventional.
Nuclear power is a top source of virtually emissions-free electricity, but many plants are shutting in the United States because of high costs and competition from solar and wind. Critics of advanced nuclear have also warned that smaller nuclear is even more expensive than conventional.

A nuclear energy venture founded by Bill Gates said Thursday (27 August) it hopes to build small advanced nuclear power stations that can store electricity to supplement grids increasingly supplied by intermittent sources like solar and wind power.

The effort is part of the billionaire philanthropist’s push to help fight climate change, and is targeted at helping utilities slash their emissions of planet-warming gases without undermining grid reliability.

TerraPower LLC, which Gates founded 14 years ago, and its partner GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, plan to commercialize stations called Natrium in the United States later this decade, TerraPower’s President and Chief Executive Chris Levesque said.

The project has not previously been reported.

Levesque said the companies are seeking additional funding from private partners and the US Energy Department, and that the project has the support of PacifiCorp, owned by billionaire Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, along with Energy Northwest and Duke Energy.

If successful, the plan is to build the plants in the United States and abroad, Levesque said.

By 2050 “we would see hundreds of these reactors around the world, solving multiple different energy needs,” Levesque said.

The 345-megawatt plants would be cooled by liquid sodium and cost about $1 billion each.

Nuclear power is a top source of virtually emissions-free electricity, but many plants are shutting in the United States because of high costs and competition from solar and wind. Critics of advanced nuclear have also warned that smaller nuclear is even more expensive than conventional.

The new plants, however, are designed to complement renewable sources of electricity because they will store the reactor power in tanks of molten salt during days when the grid is well supplied. The nuclear power could be used later when solar and wind power are low due to weather conditions.

Molten salt power storage has been used at thermal solar plants in the past, but leaks have plagued some of the projects.

Levesque said the Natrium design would provide more consistent temperatures than a solar plant, resulting in less wear and tear.

Gates, chairman of TerraPower’s board, said in a statement that Natrium innovation was “extremely difficult” but its team had “the expertise, commercial experience, and the resources necessary” to develop viable reactors.

Levesque said Natrium plants would first be built in the United States and other developed countries, but could later spread to countries that do not have yet have nuclear power.

Nonproliferation experts have warned that advanced nuclear projects could become targets for attack because their uranium fuel would be more highly enriched and more easily converted to fissile material than conventional fuel.

*first published in: www.euractiv.com

READ ALSO

EU Actually

Extreme weather or not, the climate summit in Belem is in danger

N. Peter KramerBy: N. Peter Kramer

That the weather is becoming more and more extreme does not lead to more political urgency

View 04/2021 2021 Digital edition

Magazine

Current Issue

04/2021 2021

View past issues
Subscribe
Advertise
Digital edition

Europe

The EU Needs Values-Based Engagement in the Southern Mediterranean

The EU Needs Values-Based Engagement in the Southern Mediterranean

As the EU prepares a new pact for its Southern neighborhood, the union should balance economic and security interests with support for civil society, political reforms, and inclusive governance

Business

To save the Single Market, bring back Delors’ 1992 playbook

To save the Single Market, bring back Delors’ 1992 playbook

Most people familiar with EU affairs know the single market is a myth. Hailed as the bedrock of the European Union, it was never completed and is now crumbling.

MARKET INDICES

Powered by Investing.com
All contents © Copyright EMG Strategic Consulting Ltd. 1997-2025. All Rights Reserved   |   Home Page  |   Disclaimer  |   Website by Theratron