Energy and transition economics
2026-04-26
11 minute read
21 sources
Small modular reactors meet the hyperscaler load curve
Eighteen months after the Google Kairos and Amazon X-energy announcements, the SMR thesis has moved from PowerPoint to procurement. The binding constraints are now licensing throughput, HALEU supply, and first-of-a-kind cost discipline.
Between September 2024 and December 2024, four hyperscaler nuclear deals reset the demand curve for advanced reactors. Microsoft contracted the Three Mile Island restart with Constellation, Google signed for 500 megawatts of Kairos Power output across six to seven units, Amazon committed to X-energy and a 5 gigawatt pipeline, and Meta ope...