South Korea's SK Group said on Thursday that TerraPower, a U.S. nuclear energy company founded by Bill Gates and invested by SK Group, has obtained a small modular reactor (SMR) construction license from the U.S. authorities. SK Group has maintained close ties with TerraPower. In 2022, SK Corporation and SK Innovation Co., Ltd., the holding companies of SK Group, jointly invested US$250 million in the American company.
TerraPower said the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a construction license for its planned nuclear power plant in Wyoming, which is expected to be operational in 2030.
SK Group said in a statement: "This is the first time in ten years that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved a new commercial nuclear power plant." The statement also pointed out that this is also the first license for a small modular reactor (SMR).
In January this year, SK Innovation announced that it had sold part of its shares in TerraPower to South Korea's state-owned Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Company (KHNP). SK Group remains the second largest shareholder of the US company.
SK Group stated that the approval of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is of great significance. It represents the U.S. authorities’ recognition of TerraPower’s technical capabilities in the small modular reactor (SMR) industry, which will help SK and Korea Hydro Nuclear Power Corporation further expand their global business.
SK Group added that SK Innovation will work to build an SMR ecosystem for different industrial uses at home and abroad by combining its business capabilities in the energy field and KHNP's experience in nuclear reactor construction and operation.