TerraPower Awards Second Round of Contracts for Natrium^TM Reactor Vendors

TerraPower has awarded supplier contracts to five companies to support the Natrium Reactor¹ Demonstration Project

BELLEVUE, Washington – February 7, 2024 – TerraPower announced today the selection of five suppliers to support its Natrium Reactor Demonstration Project. TerraPower is currently developing the Natrium Reactor Demonstration Project in Kemmerer, Wyoming.

These award selections are integral to the development of the Natrium plant. Upon completion, the Natrium plant will be a full commercial operating plant and will bring to market clean, reliable, stable baseload energy and flexible energy storage, as well as long-term jobs to energy producing communities.

“The expertise of these suppliers and the equipment they produce are key to supporting the Natrium technology,” said Tara Neider, Senior Vice President and Project Director for the Natrium Reactor Demonstration Project. “We will continue to put strong emphasis on engaging the diversity of the nuclear supply chain as we bring the Natrium Reactor and Energy Storage System to market.”

Supplier awards include:

• GERB: GERB will provide seismic isolation equipment and testing for the Natrium Reactor systems. The design will be determined by the local geologic characteristics of Kemmerer, Wyoming. GERB will test the equipment to demonstrate appropriate seismic motion attenuation, thereby ensuring safety through postulated seismic events.
• Thermal Engineering International (USA) Inc.: Thermal Engineering International (USA) Inc. will design and fabricate the Sodium-Salt Heat Exchanger. The exchanger transfers heat from the sodium in the intermediate heat transport system, to the salt in the nuclear island salt heat transport system. These heat exchangers reside in the Reactor Auxiliary Building providing for the essential flow and energy transfer of intermediate sodium and salt.
• Hayward Tyler, Inc.: Hayward Tyler, Inc. will provide the design, fabrication, testing and qualification for the Primary and Intermediate Sodium Pumps. The Primary Sodium Pumps provide forced cooling for the reactor core by driving sodium through the Primary Heat Transport (PHT) system. The Intermediate Sodium Pumps transport all anticipated heat loads from the PHT to the nuclear island salt heat transport system.
• Framatome US Government Solutions LLC: Framatome U.S. Government Solutions LLC will design the Ex-Vessel Fuel Handling Machine and Bottom Loading Transfer Cask for the Natrium Reactor Demonstration Project. These machines are an essential part of the fuel handling transport system that supports the nuclear reactor core component handling operations. Successful design of this equipment is vital to meeting the operational goals of the plant.
• Teledyne Brown Engineering: Teledyne Brown Engineering will provide the design, fabrication, and testing for the In-Vessel Transfer Machine (IVTM) for the Natrium Reactor Demonstration Project. The IVTM is a digitally controlled, multi-axis, pantograph style fuel handling machine. Its primary function is to manipulate core components from within the reactor vessel during refueling operations.

The Natrium technology features a 345 MWe sodium-cooled fast reactor with a molten salt-based energy storage system. The storage technology can boost the system’s output to 500 MWe for more than five and a half hours when needed. This innovative addition allows a Natrium plant to integrate seamlessly with renewable resources and leads to faster, more cost-effective decarbonization of the electric grid while producing dispatchable carbon-free energy. The Natrium demonstration plant is being constructed near a retiring coal facility.

Future Request for Proposal (RFP) opportunities for the Natrium Reactor Demonstration Project can be found on TerraPower’s website: https://www.terrapower.com/contact-us/suppliers/ 

The process of awarding contracts for the project is ongoing. TerraPower will continue to provide updates as additional contracts are awarded.

About TerraPower

TerraPower is a leading nuclear innovation company that strives to improve the world through nuclear energy and science. Since it was founded by Bill Gates and a group of like-minded visionaries, TerraPower has emerged as an incubator and developer of ideas and technologies that offer energy independence, environmental sustainability, medical advancement and other cutting-edge opportunities. It accepts and tackles some of the world’s most difficult challenges. Behind each of its innovations and programs, TerraPower actively works to bring together the strengths and experiences of the world’s public and private sectors to answer pressing global needs. Learn more at terrapower.com.

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1. A TerraPower and GE Hitachi technology

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