Texas is racing to become the nation’s testing ground for SMRs, backed by a new $350M Texas Nuclear Development Fund and business-friendly regulations. (Texas Tribune)
Multiple ventures are moving fast in TX: Natura Resources is building a molten salt research reactor at Abilene Christian University, X-energy is planning four 80 MW reactors at a Dow Chemical plant, and startup Aalo Atomics is designing truck-transportable 10 MW units for mass production.
Despite the momentum, a University of Texas study warns that SMRs only become competitive if capital costs drop below $3M per MW—a steep target given current estimates range as high as $10.1M per MW.