The United States Army said Wednesday that it will award $2.2 billion (€1.7 billion) in contracts to five companies to build and operate small nuclear reactors on military bases. The program set a goal of deploying the first such reactor by the end of September 2028.
Called microreactors, developers say each of the nuclear plants would be easy to transport and provide up to 20 megawatts of power.
The reactors will adhere to all environmental and safety regulations that apply to commercial reactors, but an Army spokesperson said the reactors will be regulated by the Army rather than the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which regulates commercial reactors.
"The whole idea here is that at the back end of this we want a commercial product," said Jeff Waksman, principal deputy assistant secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and Environment.
Army Secretary Dan Driscoll said the awards will speed up the military's ability "to deliver safe, reliable baseload power directly to our installations."
