TVA and ENTRA1 Plan to Install 6GW Modular Nuclear Reactors in the TVA Region

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The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and Houston-based ENTRA1 Energy have recently announced an agreement to build six modular nuclear plants in the TVA region, making a new significant push towards nuclear energy in the United States. 

ENTRA1 will purchase modular nuclear reactors from NuScale Energy in the biggest deal of its kind in US history and sell the generated power directly to TVA.

The TVA, established in 1933, has a long history of modernizing infrastructure and driving economic development in the Tennessee Valley, which spans seven states and is regularly affected by flooding. The TVA undertook a massive program of flood control, improvements of inland river navigation, and the electrification of the land.

The new agreement aligns with TVA’s mission by focusing on reliable and sustainable energy solutions. Under the agreement, ENTRA1 will install six power plants, each consisting of twelve NuScale NPMs. Each NPM has an output of 77 Mwe, resulting in a total of 924 Mwe per plant and a combined output of approximately 5.5 GW. This output can power approximately 4.5 million homes or 60 new data centers.

The NuScale NPM is an innovative modular reactor design that is the first small nuclear reactor to be certified by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Its design consists of the reactor core, steam generators, and pressurizer within a single pressure vessel. 

This not only reduces the need for extensive support equipment such as large-bore piping and coolant pumps found in conventional reactors, but also allows for factory mass production and easy transportation to the site.

In addition, the reactors can be installed underground, minimizing civil engineering costs. The modular design allows for scalability by adding more reactors as needed to increase power capacity. At the end of their service life, the reactors can be returned to the factory for disposal. Not only that, they also use passive cooling systems to enhance safety compared to conventional designs.

This agreement is a part of a broader push for nuclear energy in the United States. The US Department of Energy has drawn an outline of plans to expand nuclear power output significantly by 2050. According to an infographic, this includes speeding up plant testing and certification, building a nuclear fuel production, studying fuel reprocessing to reduce waste, and boosting US nuclear exports.

Ashton Henning