Radiant to build first microreactor at Tenn. Manhattan Project site

"By 2028, we'll be rolling out the first factory-built nuclear generator, and within a few years we'll be producing over a dozen per year,” Doug Bernauer, CEO and founder of Radiant, said in a statement. The factory, called R-50, has a long-term goal of producing up to 50 reactors per year.

Large investment: Radiant will be investing $280 million in the factory, and the buildout will create 175 new jobs in Roane County, Tenn., according to the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. Radiant is the sixth company to locate in Tennessee using the state’s Nuclear Energy Fund.

The Department of Energy in April picked Radiant to receive high-enriched low-assay uranium fuel needed for a reactor test, which is expected to be completed in 2026 at Idaho National Laboratory. The company will be the first to test a new nuclear reactor design at INL’s Demonstration of Microreactor Experiments (DOME) in almost 50 years.

Kaleidos is “a portable microreactor that replaces diesel generators,” according to the company, including those at military installations, data centers, and hospitals. The microreactor requires zero site water and uses fans for cooling.

DOE pilot program, DOD agreement: In August, the DOE also selected Radiant as one of 10 companies to participate in the agency’s nuclear reactor pilot program, with the goal of bringing at least three of the test reactors on line by July 4, 2026, as Nuclear Newswire reported.

Also last August, Radiant signed what it called “the first-ever agreement” to deliver a microreactor to a U.S. military base. The contract was signed with the Defense Department.