Natrium ‘Advanced Nuclear’ Power Plant Wins Wyoming Permit
16th January 2025
he Wyoming Industrial Siting Council has granted a construction permit to TerraPower for its Natrium nuclear power plant near Kemmerer — a milestone achievement both in Wyoming and nationwide for commercial-scale “advanced nuclear” energy, the company says.
“This is the first state permit ever awarded to a commercial-scale advanced nuclear project and is a testament to the groundbreaking work of our TerraPower team,” TerraPower President and CEO Chris Levesque said in a prepared statement Tuesday.
The permit allows for construction of all non-nuclear portions of the Kemmerer Power Station Unit 1 plant. TerraPower has a permit application pending before the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for all of the nuclear-related facilities. “That application was submitted in March 2024 and is on track for approval in December 2026,” according to a TerraPower press statement. “The unique Natrium design enables the company to start non-nuclear construction onsite during the NRC review.”
The fly in the ointment is, of course, burdensome government regulations.