Skip to content
nuclear•chain

Project Pele

Under construction BWX Technologies HALEU dependency
Output
2MWe

Project Pele is a helium-cooled reactor design from BWX Technologies rated at 2 MWe. Nuclear construction has begun. It requires HALEU fuel.

A military transportable microreactor, built by BWXT and designed to ship in four standard containers and be operational within days of arrival. It is authorised by the Department of Energy rather than licensed by the NRC, because it is a government prototype rather than a commercial plant — an important distinction when it is cited as evidence that microreactors are ready. It is nonetheless the furthest advanced container-scale reactor anywhere.

Regulatory position
Tier Under construction
RegulatorUS Department of Defense / Department of Energy authorisation
Application typeDoD Strategic Capabilities Office prototype, DOE-authorised
Docket / referenceUS Department of Defense Strategic Capabilities Office, Project Pele prototype
Application date—
Review phasePrototype under construction for demonstration at Idaho National Laboratory
Decision expectednot stated
Design
CoolantHelium
Reactor familyHigh-temperature gas reactor (HTGR)
Electrical output2MWe
Thermal outputnot disclosed
FuelTRISO
Enrichment HALEUUp to 19.75% U-235
First siteIdaho National Laboratory
Offtakersnone announced
Fuel supply for this design

This design needs HALEU — uranium enriched above 5% and below 20%. That is not the fuel any commercial Western power reactor uses today, and it is the single most common reason an advanced reactor timeline slips. Every Western facility that can make it or turn it into fuel:

FacilityCapacityStatus
TRISO-X Fuel Facility (TX-1), Oak Ridge not disclosed construction
American Centrifuge Plant, Piketon 900kg HALEU/yr operating
Nuclear Fuel Services, Erwin not disclosed operating
Savannah River Site HEU downblending 3,100kg HALEU total operating
BWXT TRISO facility, Gillette not disclosed planned
Urenco Capenhurst HALEU line not disclosed planned

Sources