Via interestingengineering.com
A built-in molten salt battery lets TerraPower's Natrium reactor surge from 345 MW to 500 MW on demand, making it uniquely suited for the unpredictable power appetites of AI workloads.
TerraPower’s Natrium reactor design can deliver a steady 345 MW of baseload power, then ramp up to 500 MW for more than five hours when demand spikes. The trick is an integrated molten salt energy storage system that effectively acts as a thermal battery, absorbing excess heat during low-demand periods and releasing it when the grid, or an AI training cluster, needs the extra juice.
The Meta deal and what it signals #
In January 2026, Meta signed an agreement with TerraPower for up to eight Natrium units. The projected baseload capacity across those units sits at roughly 2.8 GW, with storage capabilities pushing the effective output to approximately 4 GW.
Meta’s broader nuclear initiative reportedly targets up to 6.6 GW across several projects, all aimed at feeding the computational demands of its AI infrastructure.
The TerraPower deal, with units projected for delivery by 2032, represents the kind of multi-year energy commitment that hyperscalers are increasingly willing to make.
Boots on the ground in Wyoming #
Construction of Kemmerer Unit 1 in Wyoming is already underway after the project received NRC construction permit approval in April 2026. It marks the first utility-scale advanced nuclear plant to break ground in the US in decades.
In January 2025, TerraPower signed a memorandum of understanding with Sabey Data Centers to explore deploying Natrium plants in the Rocky Mountain region and Texas.
Why dispatchability matters more than raw output #
TerraPower’s molten salt storage sidesteps this dilemma. During periods of low demand, the reactor’s thermal output charges the salt. When demand spikes, that stored heat generates additional steam to drive turbines, boosting output by roughly 45% above baseload without burning a single additional gram of fuel.
International ambitions and competitive landscape #
TerraPower is exploring expansion opportunities in the UK and South Korea, both of which have signaled renewed interest in nuclear as a path to decarbonization and energy security.
Kairos Power, backed by Google, is pursuing a fluoride salt-cooled reactor. Amazon has invested in small modular reactor companies. Microsoft signed a deal to restart a unit at Three Mile Island.
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