Google has signed the worldʼs first corporate deal to use small nuclear reactors to generate energy to power artificial intelligence data centers.
This was reported by the Google press service.
Agreements were concluded with the developer of small modular reactors Kairos Power. The first reactor is planned to be launched by 2030, the next ones by 2035. Neither the construction sites nor the amount of the contracts are announced.
Google writes that thanks to the agreement, up to 500 MW of new carbon-free energy will be generated for the US power grid. The grid needs new power sources to support AI technologies.
The deal is also seen as important because nuclear solutions offer a clean 24/7 energy source that can help meet daily electricity needs with carbon-free energy. The development of these energy sources will contribute to the rapid decarbonization of power grids around the world.
In the US, they also talk about economic benefits and the creation of new jobs. According to the estimates of the Ministry of Energy of the country, in order to reach 200 GW of modern nuclear power in the USA by 2050, an additional 375 thousand workers will be needed.
The BBC writes that the agreement must be approved by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
How this technology works
To generate electricity, Kairos Power technology uses a molten salt cooling system combined with pelletized fuel to transfer heat to a steam turbine. Thanks to this system, the reactor can operate under low pressure, and it also allows for the construction of a simpler and more affordable nuclear reactor design.
US regulators have given Kairos Power permission to build a new type of nuclear reactor for the first time in 50 years. In July, the company began construction of a demonstration reactor in Tennessee.
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