TerraPower is positioning its Natrium sodium-cooled fast reactor as a purpose-built power source for AI data centers, citing its molten-salt energy storage system as a feature that allows output to flex between roughly 345 MW and 500 MW on demand. The Natrium design stores heat in tanks of molten salt, letting operators dispatch extra electricity during peak AI compute loads without spinning up additional generation. TerraPower's first commercial Natrium unit is under construction in Kemmerer, Wyoming, backed in part by Bill Gates. If the Wyoming plant performs as designed, it would be the first advanced fission reactor to demonstrate load-following capability at commercial scale for data center customers.
AI data centers require firm, around-the-clock power that renewable sources cannot reliably provide alone, and the Natrium reactor's built-in storage addresses that gap without natural gas backup. A successful commercial demonstration in Wyoming could accelerate nuclear power purchase agreements with hyperscalers and reshape how the industry procures baseload capacity.
Named company TerraPower, the Natrium reactor technology, specific output figures of 345 MW to 500 MW, and the AI data center power angle triggered selection. This story ranked above the MACoCon Power & Energy snippet, which contained no actionable data, and introduces a technology angle not covered in the already-published list.