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Nuclear & Fusion: SMRs, Fusion Milestones and Firm Clean Power

News and explainers on small modular reactors, reactor restarts, fusion milestones, geothermal and grid storage, with licensing status and timelines stated precisely.

Latest in Nuclear & Fusion

What we cover in Nuclear & Fusion

Nuclear & Fusion covers technologies aimed at supplying carbon-free electricity around the clock. That means small modular reactors (SMRs) and other advanced fission designs, restarts of shuttered plants, and fusion research and startups. It also covers firm alternatives such as next-generation geothermal and grid-scale storage.

Approvals are arriving faster than hardware. On September 29, 2026, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved a construction permit for the Tennessee Valley Authority's Clinch River project. The agency called it the nation's first commercial small modular reactor. That approval followed the March 2026 permit for TerraPower's sodium-cooled reactor in Wyoming. Neither plant has an operating license yet. In Michigan, Holtec began loading fuel into the closed Palisades plant on August 30, 2026. But it paused the work after a fuel assembly tilted inside the reactor vessel. The company has not said how that affects a contract to supply power by March 2027. Fervo Energy said the first 33-megawatt unit of its enhanced geothermal plant in Utah reached commercial operation on September 30. TechCrunch reported that it had begun selling electricity to the grid.

Fusion sits further out. The Fusion Industry Association counted $4.48 billion raised by fusion companies in the year to July 2026. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory says its laser facility has achieved ignition 11 times. But no fusion power plant is in commercial operation. Across all of these stories the same caution applies. A design approval is not a construction permit. A construction permit is not an operating license. A company's target date is not a forecast. This section tracks which regulator approved what and when, and separates scientific milestones from commercial power.

Nuclear & Fusion reference

Nuclear & Fusion: common questions

What is a small modular reactor?
A small modular reactor, or SMR, is a nuclear fission reactor. The International Atomic Energy Agency says it has a power capacity of up to 300 megawatts of electricity per unit. That is about one-third of a traditional reactor, the agency says. An SMR's systems and components are designed to be assembled in a factory and transported to the site. Microreactors, typically up to 10 megawatts, are a subset.
Are small modular reactors safe?
Many designs rely on passive safety, the International Atomic Energy Agency says. It says they use natural circulation and gravity to shut down the reactor without operator action or outside power. Each design must still pass regulatory review. The US projects approved so far hold construction permits and still need separate operating licenses. A 2022 Stanford-led study also found that the three SMR designs it examined would create more waste by volume than conventional reactors.
Is nuclear energy safe?
Measured by deaths per unit of electricity, nuclear power is among the safest sources. Our World in Data estimates it results in 99.8 percent fewer deaths than coal, even counting the Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents. It says wind and solar are just as safe. The risk is not zero. A Stanford University report notes that the most radioactive waste, mainly spent fuel, has to be isolated for hundreds of thousands of years.
When will fusion energy be available?
There is no firm date. Helion says its Orion plant, built to supply Microsoft, will begin initial operations in 2028. But Axios reported in September 2026 that Helion had dropped a prediction of producing electricity by then. Commonwealth Fusion Systems targets the early 2030s. The US Department of Energy's roadmap aims to support commercial fusion power in the mid-2030s. The International Atomic Energy Agency expects a prototype reactor by 2040 and electricity generation in the second half of the century. All are targets.

Sources

  1. What are Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)?, International Atomic Energy Agency
  2. NRC Approves Construction of Nation's First Small Modular Reactor, US Nuclear Regulatory Commission
  3. NRC Issues Construction Permit for TerraPower's Natrium Advanced Reactor, US Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy
  4. Incident pauses Palisades fuel loading; plant connected to switchyard, American Nuclear Society, Nuclear Newswire
  5. Fervo Energy Declares Commercial Operation at Cape Station Ahead of Schedule, Leading the Race for Next-Generation Geothermal Energy, Fervo Energy
  6. World's first enhanced geothermal power plant completed in just 23 months, TechCrunch
  7. Fusion industry raised USD4.5 billion in past year, report says, World Nuclear News
  8. Achieving Fusion Ignition, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
  9. What are the safest and cleanest sources of energy?, Our World in Data
  10. Small modular reactors produce high levels of nuclear waste, Stanford Report, Stanford University
  11. Helion | Orion, Helion
  12. Seattle-area Helion quietly moves goalpost on fusion, Axios
  13. SPARC progress, DOE Milestone approvals reflect CFS power plant maturity, Commonwealth Fusion Systems
  14. Energy Department Releases Finalized Fusion Science and Technology Roadmap to Accelerate Commercial Fusion Power, US Department of Energy
  15. Fusion - Frequently asked questions, International Atomic Energy Agency