Microreactors
Flexible reactors designed to deliver reliable energy for remote communities, critical infrastructure and mission-driven operations.
What is a microreactor?
Microreactors are compact systems that can provide reliable electricity and heat to locations where large power plants are not well suited, such as remote or isolated communities, military bases, or disaster relief zones.
These advanced nuclear systems are designed to be efficient and adaptable, allowing them to operate on or off the electric grid for extended periods, offering a viable alternative to diesel generators.
Generates Electricity
Up to 50 MW
Reliable power for communities and critical infrastructure
Provides Industrial Heat
Up to 150 MWth
Process heat for manufacturing, mining and industry
Deploys Where Needed
Factory-Built
Transportable design for flexible deployment
Why do we need microreactors?
Microreactors offer an important energy option for situations where flexibility, reliability and energy independence are especially important. Microreactors are designed to help address specific energy challenges in places such as:
Remote & Rural Communities
Some communities are far from reliable electric grids and rely on diesel generators that require frequent refueling. Microreactors could provide constant, on-site electrical power up to 50 megawatts and can operate for long stretches before needing to refuel.
Military Installations & Defense Operations
Uninterrupted power is essential for military bases, critical infrastructure and strategic defense operations. Microreactors could provide secure, around-the-clock electricity that is less vulnerable to fuel supply and supply chain disruptions, strengthening national and energy security goals.
Industrial & Manufacturing Facilities
Natural disasters can disrupt or damage energy infrastructure, leaving communities without power for days, weeks or even months. Response teams could quickly transport microreactors to affected areas, provide stable electricity until infrastructure is repaired, remove them and redeploy where needed.
Emergency Response & Disaster Recovery Efforts
Natural disasters can disrupt or damage energy infrastructure, leaving communities without power for days, weeks or even months. Response teams could quickly transport microreactors to affected areas, provide stable electricity until infrastructure is repaired, remove them and redeploy where needed.
Data Centers
Microreactors can provide electricity to enable data center development and deployment and ensure high reliability by deploying multiple microreactors at the same site to provide redundancy.
How are microreactors different from current nuclear reactors?
Microreactors, like traditional nuclear reactors, produce energy through fission, the process of splitting atoms to generate heat and electricity. However, these advanced systems use different safety features, fuels and coolants that enable greater flexibility in where and how they can be deployed.
Built for a wider range of applications and environments
Smaller and more flexible
Microreactors are significantly smaller than traditional nuclear reactors, enabling deployment in locations where larger nuclear technologies may not be practical.
Enhanced safety systems
Passive safety features remove excess heat without human intervention, and advanced fuels offer greater resistance to heat and corrosion.
Factory-built and transportable
Microreactors can be assembled in a factory and transported by truck, rail or air, reducing on-site construction and accelerating deployment.
Long operating cycles
Designed to operate for years without refueling or significant maintenance, microreactors can provide reliable energy for remote and isolated locations.
What is INL doing to advance microreactors?
Microreactors are not yet commercially available. However, a growing number of companies are advancing these innovative nuclear energy systems with support from federal agencies such as the Department of Energy, the Department of War and national laboratories.
As the nation’s lead laboratory for nuclear energy research and development, Idaho National Laboratory (INL) plays a central role in advancing microreactor technology. INL provides industry partners with the expertise, facilities and equipment needed to test, validate and demonstrate new technologies. INL also provides data to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to support the licensing and commercialization of microreactor technology. INL offers multiple ways for industry to access experts and facilities, including the National Reactor Innovation Center (NRIC), which helps move microreactor technologies from development to commercial deployment.
From testing and validation to demonstration and deployment, INL helps advance microreactor technologies through specialized facilities, technical expertise and industry partnerships.
DOME
The National Reactor Innovation Center’s Demonstration of Microreactor Experiments (DOME) test bed is purpose-built to accelerate the development of advanced nuclear reactor technologies — offering a one-of-a-kind environment where experimental reactors can safely go critical for the first time.
Nuclear Energy Launch Pad
The Launch Pad provides streamlined pathways for developers to demonstrate advanced nuclear energy technologies and accelerate commercial deployment.
Leveraging DOE’s authority and expertise, the program supports developers working across a range of nuclear technologies, including advanced reactors, fuel fabrication, fuel enrichment, fuel reprocessing and other related innovations for different energy applications.
Reactor Pilot Program
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) officially kicked off President Trump’s Nuclear Reactor Pilot Program, announcing it will initially work with 11 advanced reactor projects to move technologies toward deployment.
The new pilot program was created under Executive Order 14301, which reforms reactor testing at the department and sets a goal to construct, operate and achieve criticality of at least three test reactors using the DOE authorization process by July 4, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to common questions about microreactor technology, commercialization, regulation and deployment.
Are microreactors operating today?
No. However, there are some microreactors operating outside the United States. For example, Russia has several microreactors, including a new system that is barge-mounted and producing heat and electricity for an arctic community across the Bering Strait from Alaska.
Why is there renewed interest in microreactors?
Fluctuating oil prices and the need to generate power in remote locations are helping to drive renewed interest in these very small nuclear reactors.
The U.S. Department of Defense is pursuing the concept as its military operations become more energy intensive and require portable, dense power sources. Remote, rural communities in the U.S., many of which fly or truck in diesel to run generators, are considering microreactors since they could generate power on site.
In addition, these new systems are expected to operate years without refueling – much like the nuclear reactors used to power the U.S. Navy’s nuclear submarines.
What are the benefits of microreactors?
There are several. As noted above, one of the advantages is that a microreactor could generate a significant amount of power on site, eliminating the need to haul diesel fuel over long distances or to remote areas.
This is important for communities that rely on diesel to power their homes and businesses, for mining or exploration companies in remote areas, or even to restore power in areas hit by hurricanes or other natural disasters.
The new generation of microreactors under development is designed to be simple to use, easy to transport and set up, and go years without having to be refueled.
Are microreactors a new technology?
Yes and no. In the 60s and 70s, U.S. military commissioned several mobile nuclear reactors including the “Sturgis,” a floating nuclear power station used to supply electricity to the Panama Canal Zone.
It supplied 10 megawatts of electricity from 1968-1975, located on a barge in Gatun Lake. The military decommissioned most of its microreactors by the early 1970s because oil was cheap, weakening demand for remote power sources.
Several organizations and companies are developing new designs equipped with advanced technologies such as sensors, electronics, safety systems and materials that did not exist 40 years ago. These advancements are expected to make the next generation of microreactors easier and less expensive to operate. This, in turn, could open new markets for these small, powerful, portable systems.
Who regulates and licenses microreactors?
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission oversees licensing. As very small microreactors evolve with safer construction materials, fuels and electronics, the regulatory process also needs modernization to recognize the new generation of small nuclear reactors.
The U.S. Department of Energy supports a new approach to licensing through the Licensing Modernization Project, a DOE cost-shared, industry-led effort to establish a technology-inclusive, risk-informed and performance-based approach for advanced reactor licensing.
When could microreactors become commercially available?
The anticipated time frame for demonstration of these modern microreactor systems is within the next seven years.
The 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) requests a pilot program to construct a microreactor for energy resilience by 2027. Also, the Pentagon’s Strategic Capabilities Office is seeking proposals for a mobile microreactor demonstration.
Will microreactors be cost-effective?
The cost for these new generation microreactors is still uncertain, although it is anticipated that microreactors can be cost competitive for niche applications such as high-resilience needs, remote and geographically difficult locations, and disaster relief.
A recent report by the Nuclear Energy Institute: “Cost Competitiveness of Micro-Reactors for Remote Markets,” estimates the cost to generate electricity from the first microreactor will be between $0.14/kWh and $0.41/kWh. In some remote Alaskan areas that are dependent upon diesel generators, electricity prices are more than $1/kWh.
Future costs are estimated to decrease to between $0.09/kWh and $0.33/kWh. Costs are expected to decrease after demonstration, licensing and initial deployment and will depend on the location and type of owner, whether private or public.
Connect with our Team
Questions about our research, capabilities or collaboration opportunities? Our team is ready to connect you with the right experts and resources at INL.
Addison Arave
Nuclear Science & Technology Communications Liaison