The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued a construction permit to Kairos Power for its Hermes low-power demonstration reactor to be built at the Heritage Center Industrial Park site in Oak Ridge.
Kairos Power, according to its website, is a “nuclear technology, engineering and manufacturing company whose mission is to enable the world’s transition to clean energy with the ultimate goal of dramatically improving people’s quality of life while protecting the environment.”
BREAKING: @NRCgov has voted to issue a construction permit to Kairos Power for the Hermes demonstration reactor to be built in Oak Ridge, TN – a critical step on our iterative pathway to commercializing advanced reactor technology. Read more: https://t.co/NPKs8V5EUY pic.twitter.com/fwagKpmlx2
— Kairos Power (@KairosPower) December 12, 2023
The Hermes test reactor is a 35-megawatt, non-power reactor that uses molten salt to cool the reactor core, providing operational data to support the development of a larger version meant for a commercial nuclear power plant.
The company submitted its construction permit application to the NRC in November of 2021, as reported by The Tennessee Star.
Kairos Power said the construction of the Hermes reactor will demonstrate its ability to “deliver clean, safe, and affordable nuclear heat.”
The company also said the reactor’s construction marks a “critical step” on its “iterative pathway to commercializing its advanced reactor technology.”
“Kairos Power is thrilled to have achieved this major regulatory milestone as we make final preparations to start construction at the Hermes site next year,” Mike Laufer, Kairos Power co-founder and CEO said in a statement. “We are excited for this next phase in the deployment of the Hermes reactor, and we remain committed to being a good community partner to our neighbors in Oak Ridge as we bring value to the region and build on its nuclear legacy. With the Hermes construction permit now approved, Kairos Power is demonstrating our leadership in developing advanced nuclear reactors and we have made a big step forward on our path to deploying clean, safe, reliable, and affordable energy in East Tennessee and beyond.”
Tennessee U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN-03), chairman of the U.S. House Appropriations Energy and Water Development Subcommittee, called the company’s construction permit approval “major news for the Oak Ridge area.”
“Oak Ridge and East Tennessee are powering America’s nuclear renaissance and a future built on cheap, clean, renewable nuclear energy!” Fleischmann added.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Model of Kairos Power Plant in Tennessee” by U.S. Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy.
