Nuclear company plans reactor-powered data center on federal land : NPR

Key Points:

• Valar Atomics plans "Project Beehive," proposing to install 456 small nuclear reactors on over 9,000 acres of federal land in Utah, aiming to generate around 9.6 gigawatts of power for data centers and industrial heat applications.
• The project includes facilities for nuclear fuel production and waste storage, with nonnuclear construction expected to start by the end of this year and reactors coming online by 2028.
• Local activists express concern over the extensive use of public lands and potential environmental impacts, emphasizing the unprecedented scale and urging increased public awareness and input during the regulatory review process.
• Valar Atomics has benefited from recent regulatory reforms under the Trump administration to accelerate small modular reactor development, with its test reactor, Ward 250, already achieving criticality and producing electricity in Utah.
• The project represents a significant shift in nuclear power strategy by deploying smaller, mass-produced reactors in phases, potentially lowering costs and speeding deployment compared to traditional large nuclear plants.