Bluecore Energy, the Long Beach, US-based floating nuclear power startup, has bought its first supply of uranium hexafluoride (UF6), a low-enriched 4.95% blend of U-235 suitable for a commercial nuclear power installation.
The material is being held at a US nuclear fuel facility outside the state of California while Bluecore advances its plans for future fuel fabrication, testing and validation.
UF6 is the required form of uranium during the enrichment stage of the nuclear fuel cycle. During the fuel fabrication stage, the UF6 is converted into uranium dioxide, or UO2, which can then be fabricated into fuel pellets and assembled into nuclear fuel.
The purchase follows Bluecore’s recent $50m (€44m) seed financing.
Since emerging from stealth, Bluecore has secured its first barge, continued development of its first maritime nuclear energy system and advanced its work with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the US Coast Guard. It is also working on maritime classification with the American Bureau of Shipping.
Bluecore is developing floating nuclear power systems designed to bring reliable, zero-emission energy directly to ports, critical infrastructure and other locations facing rapidly growing power demand.
The company’s initial system is being designed to produce approximately 10 MW of continuous power, using water-cooled nuclear technology and a maritime architecture designed to operate for years at a time, requiring refuelling only once every few years, and to scale as energy needs grow.
The new financing will support continued engineering and hardware development, testing and validation, regulatory and classification work, manufacturing, hiring and advancement of Bluecore’s first system toward deployment.
Unlike conventional nuclear power plants built around permanent land-based sites, Bluecore says it is designing its systems from the beginning for deployment on floating maritime platforms. It said that architecture creates flexibility in where future systems can operate.
“We are putting the pieces in place across fuel, testing, engineering, safety, regulation and maritime classification at the same time,” said Kofi Asante, Bluecore’s founder and chief executive officer.
“That is what it takes to turn this technology into a real system, and ultimately deliver reliable, zero-emission energy where it is needed most.”
