Google has signed an agreement for the world’s first corporate agreement to purchase nuclear energy from multiple small modular reactors (SMR).

Kairos Power will develop a fleet of SMRs with an expected timeline of 2030, followed by additional reactor deployments through 2035, with a capacity of 500MW.

Under the agreement, Kairos Power will develop a fleet of SMRs with an expected timeline of 2030, followed by additional reactor deployments through 2035, with a capacity of 500MW. The Plants will be sited in relevant service territories to supply electricity to Google data centres under Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs).

“Our partnership with Google will enable Kairos Power to quickly advance down the learning curve as we drive toward cost and schedule certainty for our commercial product,” said Mike Laufer, Kairos Power CEO. “By coming alongside in the development phase, Google is more than just a customer. They are a partner who deeply understands our innovative approach and the potential it can deliver.”

Kairos Power’s technology uses a molten-salt cooling system, combined with a ceramic, pebble-type fuel, to efficiently transport heat to a steam turbine to generate power. This passively safe system allows the reactor to operate at low pressure, enabling a simpler more affordable nuclear reactor design.

Since 2010, Google has signed more than 115 agreements for over 14GW of clean energy generation capacity. The additional generation that will be developed under this multi-plant agreement will complement Google’s existing use of variable renewables, like solar and wind, and could help it reach a 24/7 carbon-free energy and net-zero goal.

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