Reflecting Upon a Year of Unprecedented Progress

In 2022, TerraPower secured a total of $830 million through the largest private fundraise among advanced nuclear companies. These funds support the development, demonstration and deployment of our three groundbreaking technologies: the Natrium^TM reactor[1], TerraPower Isotopes and the Molten Chloride Fast Reactor experiment.

In October, TerraPower and PacificCorp announced a joint effort to evaluate the possibility of deploying up to five additional Natrium reactors in the PacifiCorp service territory by 2035. This collaboration will study the potential for Natrium reactors to be located near fossil-fueled generation sites, similar to the Natrium demonstration plant in Wyoming. This is a significant step toward large-scale deployment of Natrium reactors that provide carbon-free, dispatchable energy along with an energy storage system.

The Natrium demonstration plant in Kemmerer, Wyoming, is underway. Building near one of PacificCorp’s retiring coal plants, this is the only coal-to-nuclear project in the world currently in development.

Crews conducted geotechnical investigations onsite this year. There are currently over 800 engineers working on the final plant design and engineering. TerraPower’s CEO and multiple team members provided updates to the Kemmerer community in January and October this year, as well as continue to engage with stakeholder groups across Wyoming.

Onsite work will start again in Spring 2023 with construction of the large sodium test facility, a non-nuclear building that will allow for the testing of critical components for the Natrium plant. The TerraPower team also plans to submit the construction permit application to the NRC in 2023. 

TerraPower Isotopes (TPI) develops advanced radioisotope generators to support medical research. The TPI^TM technology is utilizing proven methods to extract research grade Actinium-255; an isotopic starting material that may be innovatively used by pharmaceutical companies to support their development of targeted alpha therapies for cancer patients.  

TPI aims to increase the supply of Actinium-225 by 75 to 100 times and is seeing immense interest from industry. In February, TPI entered into a supply agreement with Radiopharm Theranostics. Then, in March, TerraPower secured an additional supply agreement with Advanced Accelerator Applications, a Novartis company. These partnerships bring TPI a step closer to increasing widespread access to Actinium-225. 

The Molten Chloride Fast Reactor (MCFR) is a nuclear technology that can decarbonize the economy in sectors including but not limited to electricity. By operating at higher temperatures than conventional reactors, the MCFR will generate emissions-free electricity more efficiently and enable new industrial applications. 

In February this year, TerraPower and Southern Company announced the agreement to design, construct and operate the world’s first Molten Chloride Reactor Experiment at Idaho National Laboratory. This experiment will help demonstrate the MCFR technology and bring it closer to eventual commercialization.

This fall TerraPower completed the installation of the Integrated Effects Test. This was a crucial step in the development of the first-of-a-kind MCFR and stands as the world’s largest chloride salt system developed by the nuclear sector.