Small Nuclear Reactors Planned To Power 2 U.S. Data Centers

A blockchain-focused data center operator plans to use small modular nuclear reactors at a pair of U.S. data center campuses, potentially the first deployment of a concept that has emerged as a much-discussed solution to the industry's power issues. 

Standard Power will deploy two dozen small modular reactors to produce nearly 2 gigawatts of power for its data center sites in Ohio and Pennsylvania, the company announced last week. While no timelines were shared for either development, the projects could represent the first use of SMRs to directly power data centers. 

According to Standard Power, which provides colocation for blockchain mining and other high-performance workloads like AI training, the two campuses will utilize reactors built by NuScale Power Corp. In January, NuScale became the first company to have an SMR design approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

The campuses will utilize a combined 24 reactor modules to produce 1,848 megawatts, according to the company. The reactors will be built and operated by energy development firm Entra1. 

SMRs like NuScale’s now-approved Power Module are closer in size and scale to the reactors powering the Navy’s submarines and aircraft carriers than to the massive nuclear generating stations typically used by utilities. Their small size means they require a fraction of the footprint needed for older nuclear plants. They can also be built closer to populated areas than older facilities. 

Proponents say SMR plants can be built more cheaply, more quickly and in more places than their traditional counterparts, with none of the risk of large-scale environmental catastrophe often associated with nuclear energy. 

As developers and operators struggle to find sites with access to the massive amounts of power that data centers need while simultaneously meeting mandates to reduce carbon emissions, SMRs are increasingly viewed as a potential answer to two of the industry’s biggest challenges.