Bill Gates Moves Ahead With Nuclear Power Plant In Wyoming

Bill Gates and TerraPower have begun construction on a next-generation nuclear power plant in Kemmerer, Wyoming, which Gates believes will transform energy generation, Jennifer McDermott reported for The Associated Press (AP).

TerraPower aims to complete site preparations promptly to expedite reactor construction upon permit approval. I Photo: TerraPower

Gates, who attended the groundbreaking ceremony, chairs TerraPower, which is seeking a construction permit from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for an advanced reactor using sodium cooling instead of water.

The project, with an estimated cost of up to $4 billion, is co-funded by the US Department of Energy.

The site is next to PacifiCorp’s Naughton Power Plant, set to cease coal operations by 2026 and natural gas by 2036. Nuclear reactors, which do not emit greenhouse gases, will provide PacifiCorp with carbon-free power.

TerraPower aims to complete site preparations promptly to expedite reactor construction upon permit approval.

This project could reduce future reactor costs and marks a significant step in adopting advanced nuclear technologies, with Russia currently leading in sodium-cooled reactor development.