Energy demand is projected to increase at an unprecedented rate—you may have heard it already. But why? Advanced computing, artificial intelligence, and the electrification of the manufacturing and transportation sectors, to name a few.
These big power users need a lot of reliable, always-on electricity, which nuclear energy conveniently provides without emitting carbon. Naturally, customers are taking a close look at what nuclear can do for their business, but they’re not the only ones behind the unprecedented levels of support.
Support for nuclear by everyday Americans is at a record high, nuclear seems to be the one thing members of Congress can agree on, and even Japan is thinking of getting back in the game.
The growing confidence in this tech that so many sectors of society are sharing means more reactors, in more shapes and sizes, across more communities. Anyway, let’s break it down.
Trends
Customer Interest: Data centers, and their massive power needs, have been responsible for a lot of this quarter’s recent interest in large reactors. The next-gen nuclear space gained some more customer traction as well: Oklo is shopping its technology around the Permian Basin and both Terrestrial Energy and BWXT are tackling heavy industry. And Q2 didn’t forget nuclear’s customers at sea, with the birth of a new association, NEMO, that hopes to facilitate nuclear-powered shipping ventures.
Stock Market: This quarter saw two new nuclear companies officially go public: NANO Nuclear and Oklo. And Portfolio managers and advisors started paying special attention to utility companies with exposure to nuclear energy. Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) also saw lots of movement: WisdomTree added nuclear to their multi-thematic ETF and Defiance ETFs launched the first leveraged uranium ETF.
Big Voices: Billionaires continue to get vocal about nuclear and its prospects. Some are more involved than others—Bill Gates is the founder of TerraPower and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is Oklo’s chairman—but there’s also Dan Loeb, who said he’s bullish on the energy transition and thinks exposure to nuclear is a smart play. It’s not just the billionaires; Andrew Beebe of the VC firm Obvious Ventures thinks fission is coming back “in a big way,” and Jim Cramer recently echoed Loeb’s sentiments by recommending certain stocks due to their exposure to nuclear energy.
I think we have to reembrace, as a nation, nuclear energy as the cleanest, most reliable form of energy that's out there.
Announcements
U.S. Developments:
- Uranium stocks surge as US Senate passes Russian import ban (CNBC)
- The surprising reason why utilities stocks have become the hottest sector on Wall Street (MarketWatch)
- PSEG in talks to sell nuclear power to data centers: CEO LaRossa (Utility Dive)
- US companies join up to lower nuclear investment costs (World Nuclear News)
- US to Start $3.4 Billion Buy-Up of Domestic Nuclear Reactor Fuel (Bloomberg)
- Small modular reactor startups Oklo and Nano Nuclear Energy make US stock market debut (Utility Dive)
- TerraPower begins construction at 345-MW advanced reactor site in Wyoming (Utility Dive)
- X-energy Awarded $148.5 Million Investment Tax Credit for First-of-a-Kind TRISO-X Fuel Fabrication Facility
- US company claims nuclear battery breakthrough (World Nuclear News)
- Moody’s Upgrades Constellation’s Credit Rating as Policy Support and Growing Demand for Clean Energy Fuel Strong Financial Performance
- US Army seeks nuclear microreactors for reliable on-site generation (Utility Dive)
International Developments:
- Ukraine Starts Building First US-design Nuclear Reactors (AFP News)
- Italy sees role for nuclear energy to meet green goals, minister says (Reuters)
- Britain to build Europe’s first next generation nuclear fuel facility (Reuters)
- Slovakia plans to build a new nuclear reactor (AP News)
- Indian Oil in Talks with State Nuclear Firm for Small Reactors (Bloomberg)
- UK Space Agency Awards Space Reactor Development Project to BWXT and Rolls-Royce
- The Long-Term Solution Is Nuclear Power, Says Romanian Energy Minister (BTA News)
- Megha Engineering secures $1.53bn nuclear power contract in India (Power Technology)
- OPG expects nuclear construction on first SMR to begin in 2025 (POWER Engineering)
- Europe’s only nuclear unicorn raises €87m (FT’s Sifted)
- New nuclear included in draft Korean energy plan (World Nuclear News)
- Investor Focus on Nuclear Energy Pushes VanEck's Uranium ETF to $100 million in AUM (VanEck)
- Sweden Shortlists UK, US Firms For New Nuclear Reactor (AFP News)
- Thailand exploring small modular nuclear reactor technology, says PM (Reuters)
- Estonia / Parliament Resolution Paves Way For Establishing Nuclear Energy Legislation (NucNet)
- Bulgaria's Kozloduy using first Westinghouse fuel (World Nuclear News)
- Rolls-Royce Teases 'Iron Man'-Like Micro Nuclear Reactor (Newsweek)
- Mitsubishi Heavy Moving Closer to Building New Reactor in Japan (Bloomberg)
- Norway Asks Committee to Consider Nuclear Power Option (Bloomberg)
If we don’t build 100 reactors, we won’t make a significant contribution to climate.
Commentary
- Bill Gates and Sam Altman invest in nuclear power and you should too, financial adviser says (Quartz)
- Ultra-high-net-worth investors are betting on 2 key sectors right now, and both can be purchased as ETFs, according to a global family office (Business Insider)
- The Most Important Global Commodity of the Decade (VettaFi)
- Goldman is bullish long term on nuclear power and uranium. This stock is a key way to gain exposure (CNBC)
- In an AI arms race, data centers are going nuclear (Business Insider)
- Data centers will likely provide boost to nuclear energy, says Cameco CEO (Reuters)
- U.S. needs major nuclear power expansion to meet rising electricity demand, Southern Company CEO says (CNBC)
- Oklo’s diverse order book demonstrates small reactor potential (Reuters Events)
- ‘Cheapest route’ for energy is implementing nuclear power (Sky News)
- Is nuclear the key to zero-emission cruising? (Cruise&Ferry)
- Dow CEO on Nuclear Energy (CNBC’s Squawk on the Street)
- Uranium is booming, and Canada must seize the bull by the horns (The Globe and Mail)
Stay tuned for Q3 2024, where we’ll introduce you to The Nuclear Company…
.png?language=en-US){kind=spacer}