The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is seeking an Expression of Interest (EOI) from industry providers to suggest potential tests and experiments that leverage the Microreactor Application Research Validation and Evaluation (MARVEL) demonstration.

MARVEL is expected to serve as a nuclear test bed to demonstrate microreactor operations and end-use applications, paving the way for unleashing private sector nuclear energy development.

An 85kWth reactor capable of producing more than 10 kWe of electricity, MARVEL can be used for a wide range of applications including, but not limited to, novel safeguards, advanced instrumentation, data validation and novel nuclear-generated heat or electricity.

Promising concepts submitted through the initial EOI will be invited to respond to a potential Notice of Opportunity at a later stage.

The goal of this effort is to provide a platform where the private sector can access novel nuclear technologies to demonstrate innovative new use cases for microreactors.

The EOI will close at 5:00 PM EST on August 30, 2025.