US Air Force chooses Oklo microreactor for Alaska base

The US Air Force, through the Defense Logistics Agency, intends to award a contract to Oklo to install its nuclear microreactor for power and heat at the Eielson Air Force Base.

The award comes from the Air Force's microreactor pilot programme.

Oklo would obtain a license from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), construct the plant, and operate it under a long-term power purchase agreement.

Oklo plans to commercialise its liquid metal fast reactor technology with the Aurora powerhouse, which is designed to produce up to 15MW of electricity on both recycled nuclear fuel and fresh fuel. Oklo said its fission technology first was demonstrated by the Experimental Breeder Reactor-II, which sold and supplied power to the grid and showed waste recycling capabilities over 30 years of operation.

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The company also has secured a site use permit from the US Department of Energy and a fuel award from the Idaho National Laboratory for a commercial-scale advanced fission power plant in Idaho, which is targeted to go online in 2026 or 2027.

Oklo recently announced it plans to go public through a merger with AltC Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company, and will seek a listing on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “OKLO.”

Originally published on power-eng.com