Advanced Reactors / Lack Of Fuel Could Delay Bill Gates’ Natrium Power Plant By Two Years

Senator criticises DOE for relying on Russia and ‘not moving fast enough’ to ensure domestic supply
Lack Of Fuel Could Delay Bill Gates’ Natrium Power Plant By Two Years
TerraPower plans to build the first Natrium reactor at a retiring coal facility in Kemmerer, Wyoming. Courtesy TerraPower.
An advanced nuclear reactor proposed for the US state of Wyoming could be delayed at least two years because of a lack of advanced fuel sources outside Russia, its developer announced.

TerraPower, a company fronted by Bill Gates, said Russia is the only commercial source of the more highly enriched fuel high-assay, low-enriched uranium (Haleu) fuel the Natrium nuclear power plant requires, but sourcing from there is no longer an option.

TerraPower will have to wait for the US supply chain to catch up and the chances that can happen by the company’s 2028 deployment target look slim.

TerraPower recently announced plans to build a facility that will use Haleu to produce fuel for the Natrium plant, but construction will not begin until next year.

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