Microsoft Looks to SMRs to Power Its AI Business

• Microsoft Looks to SMRs to Power Its AI Business
• Southern Announces Use of Highly Enriched LEU at Vogle 2
• Nucor and Helion to Develop Historic 500 MW Fusion Power Plant
• Nuclear Fusion / US Aims For Pilot Commercial Plant Within A Decade – Granholm
• Saudi Arabia Updates Plans for Nuclear Energy

Microsoft Looks to SMRs to Power Its AI Business

The energy intensive nature of massive data centers that support Microsoft’s rapidly growing business in the world of artificial intelligence has turned the company’s attention to acquiring the needed power from small modular reactors (SMRs).  A typical data center on the small side can use 50 MW of power but a massive facility can use twice or even six times that amount of power.

Interestingly, the new computer chip sets that are used to power the high rates of information processing needed by artificial intelligence software applications are responsible for the significant increase in demand for electricity by data centers. About 43% of the electricity used by data centers powers the computers in it. It takes a nearly equal amount of electricity to cool the data center based on all the heat generated by the servers in it.

Microsoft Seeks a Manager for Its SMR Strategy

What got everyone’s attention in September is a job posting by Microsoft (now closed). In it the company said,

“Microsoft looking for a Principal Program Manager, Nuclear Technology, who will be responsible for maturing and implementing a global Small Modular Reactor (SMR) and microreactor energy strategy. This senior position is tasked with leading the technical assessment for the integration of SMR and microreactors to power the datacenters that the Microsoft Cloud and AI reside on. The new hire would join the energy innovation team at Microsoft, working with P. Todd Noe, director of nuclear technologies engineering at Microsoft.”

Noe said on LinkedIn: “This is not just a job, it is a challenge. By joining us, you will be part of a global movement that is transforming the way we produce and consume energy. You will also have the chance to grow your skills, advance your career, and make an impact on millions of lives.”

In his Linkedin profile Mr. Noe indicated he worked for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) for 22 years in various nuclear engineering capacities before taking his current position at Microsoft as Director of Nuclear Technologies Engineering in May 2022. He has a degree in mechanical engineering and is certified as a senior reactor operator.

According to a company fact sheet, as of August 2023 the Microsoft network connects more than 60 datacenter regions, 200 datacenters, 190 points of presence, and over 175,000 miles of terrestrial and subsea fiber worldwide, which connects to the rest of the internet at strategic global edge points of presence.

In addition to pulling electricity from regional grids, each data center has diesel generator backups in case of power outages.

All these numbers mean that there are robust opportunities for Microsoft to harness SMRs to provide reliable, CO2 emission free electricity to its data centers. Further, as data centers grow, SMRs can grow with them by adding new units over time.

What SMRs are on First, Who’s on Second, and So on?

Another view of Microsoft’s interest in SMRs is that given the rapid growth of its business related to artificial intelligence (software as a service), and intense competition from Google and Amazon for new business, the firm is likely to seek the earliest SMRs that come to market which means reactors based on light water designs (LWR). This design choice will also avoid being hamstrung by delays in obtaining HALEU fuel which has already delayed TerraPower’s coal to nuclear project on Wyoming by two years.

NuScale In the US the choice which has the shortest time to market for an LWR SMR is NuScale’s 77 MW SMR which is slated to break ground at a site in Idaho for its customer UAMPS by 2028.

GE-Hitachi – Following close behind is the GE-Hitach BWXT300, a 300 MW SMR which, unlike NuScale, has not yet had a safety evaluation by the NRC. That said the company’s SMR has provisional commitments from TVA and Ontario Power Generation (OTP) to build multiple units at existing power station sites.

Holtec – Further out in terms of time to market is Holtec’s SMR160, a 160 MW SMR which is like the other two is an LWR. The firm is currently focused on eventually building its first of a kind unit at the former site of the Oyster Creek nuclear reactor along New Jersey’s southeast Atlantic coast.  It has also been reported the firm is exploring developing an SMR at the site of the now closed Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan.

Microsoft’s announcement of a new senior manager role for SMRs to create a strategy to acquire them to power its data center will not go unnoticed by its competitors in the artificial intelligence world, namely Google and Amazon.

Google

Google Cloud Platform (GCP), the cloud computing service of Alphabet Inc, provides compute, storage, and networking services through its data centers in over 20 countries and 35 locations around the world. Growth in Google Cloud regions and the company’s core products and platforms, such as Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube, are fueling the company’s need for more data center capacity.

In total, Google operates or is developing nearly 30 data centers around the world. These data centers support Google’s current and planned 44 cloud regions – a physical location where it clusters data centers – that are designed to be highly available, fault-tolerant, and concurrently maintainable.

Amazon

AWS global infrastructure lists 102 Availability Zones within 32 geographic regions around the world, with announced plans for 12 more Availability Zones and 4 more AWS Regions in Canada, Malaysia, New Zealand, and Thailand.

Just to get an idea of how the computer industry is driving demand for data centers, Amazon announced in June that it is investing $7.9 billion in data centers in the Columbus, OH, region in part to service Intel’s $20 billion semiconductor manufacturing plant that is also being built a few miles northwest of the city.

All this activity requires huge amounts of electricity and, for the most part, a lot of it still comes from fossil fueled generation plants.

Other Data Centers

This year there have been several datacenters that have committed to use electricity from nuclear power as a means to end their reliance on fossil fuels.

Last month, Green Energy Partners and IP3 detailed a plan to build a massive datacenter campus in Virginia powered entirely on small modular reactors (SMRs).

Cumulus Data opened the doors on a nuclear-powered datacenter in Pennsylvania this January. The 48NW facility is located adjacent to the 2,450 MW Susquehanna power plant.

A question that is still to be answered is whether SMRs can provide electricity to data centers at costs that are competitive with fossil fuels, renewables, fuel cells, and hydro.

To wrap it up, Microsoft’s decision is seek the acquisition of SMRs to power its data center could be the start of a significant source of demand for LWR type SMRs. Whether advanced reactors designs can catch up will depend on how much market share, and early positioning, LWR SMRs can achieve by the end of the 2020s. Once a data center operator commits to an SMR design for its first facility, if successful, for the same of efficiency and economies of scale in terms of volume purchases from the supplier, it will more or less lock in on that design.

Potential Global Demand

However, North American data centers are not the only source of future demand for SMRs. Keep in mind also that the total number of data centers operated collectively by  Microsoft, Google, and Amazon are not the biggest operators of these massive computing facilities on a global basis. Amazon is listed as the 10th largest.

Three of the top data center operators are in Asia with more than 500 data centers spread across China, Japan, and other Asian nations. Like their American counterparts, they are seeking new sources of reliable, CO2 emission free electricity. Data centers could become a significant market segment globally for SMRs in the coming decades.

Note About Date Center Electricity Demand

As of May 2023 according to McKinsey, U.S. data center power consumption is expected to reach 35 GWs by 2030, up from 17 GW last year.  A typical data center can range from 100-300 MW in electrical demand. according to HDR an engineering services firm with customers in the data center industry.

HSR notes on its website that “a 100-megawatt load likely requires a substation, preferably with two independent utility feeds to meet expected reliability and resiliency. The substation generally includes transformation to medium voltage, and distribution switchgear supplies power across the data center campus to many separate 480-volt load centers. Each load center typically feeds a load of about 3 megawatts, supporting a combination of information technology, HVAC, network systems and the central utility plant. “

HDR explains that nearly all data centers are considered mission-critical, so backup power is provided to most or all of the facility. Backup power is provided with emergency diesel generators sized to match the capacity of the 480-volt load centers located around the facility.

Looking to the future, although the current power setup for typical data centers has a reliable grid supply with redundant feeders, an electrical system with built-in redundancies, and diesel generators, regions saturated by data centers, like Northern Virginia, and Silicon Valley, are faced with a limited availability of grid-supplied power. Hence, new reliable sources of electricity controlled by the data center companies themselves, are a likely solution.

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Southern Announces Use of Highly Enriched LEU at Vogle 2

On August 1, 2023, Vogtle Unit 2 received first-of-a-kind approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to be the first U.S. commercial reactor authorized to use advanced fuel, or Accident Tolerant Fuel, exceeding 5% enrichment of Uranium 235. The utility said the use higher-enriched fuel is expected to make nuclear power even more dependable, reliable and affordable.

Vogtle Unit 2 received first-of-a-kind approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to be the first U.S. commercial reactor authorized to use advanced fuel, or Accident Tolerant Fuel (ATF), exceeding 5% enrichment of uranium-235. The company noted in its press statement that, “With enrichments up to 6 wt.% uranium-235, this milestone underscores the industry’s effort to optimize fuel, enabling increased fuel efficiency and long-term affordability for nuclear power plants."

What’s the Significance of the Decision?

Reliability: Nuclear accounts for nearly half of our country’s clean energy and is essential to grid reliability, running 24/7/365 in between refueling outages. Higher enriched uranium lasts longer, which would extend the length of time between refueling outages to between 1.5-2 years.

Affordability: Fewer fuel assemblies needed can reduce fuel costs, making clean nuclear even more affordable.

Clean: One uranium fuel pellet—roughly the size of a pencil eraser—produces as much clean energy as 17,000 cubic feet of natural gas, 1,780 pounds of coal, or 149 gallons of water; Accident Tolerant Fuel makes nuclear even more impressive by comparison.

Timely solution: With this historic regulatory authorization in hand, Southern Nuclear and Westinghouse are moving forward with the manufacturing of these first-of-a-kind fuel assemblies with planned installation in early 2025.

Background on the Decision

In 2022, Southern Nuclear signed an agreement with Westinghouse to load four lead test assemblies (LTAs) with next-generation fuel features into Unit 2 of Plant Vogtle that use key components from Westinghouse’s High Energy Fuel initiative and the EnCore Fuel program. These features include ADOPT uranium dioxide pellets, AXIOM fuel rod cladding and chromium-coated cladding combined with Westinghouse’s advanced PRIME fuel assembly design.

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Nucor and Helion to Develop Historic 500 MW Fusion Power Plant

Nucor Corporation (NYSE: NUE) announced a collaboration with fusion power company, Helion to develop a 500 MW fusion power plant. The project, as planned, will offer baseload zero-carbon electricity from fusion directly to a Nucor steelmaking facility.

Nucor and Helion are working together to set a firm timeline and are committed to beginning operations as soon as possible with a target of 2030.

Nucor is making a direct investment of $35 million in Helion to accelerate fusion deployment in the United States. This is the first fusion energy agreement of this scale in the world and could pave the way for decarbonizing the entire industrial sector.

Helion noted in its press statement that it has a history of innovation in fusion technology. It said it has already achieved remarkable milestones, including the construction of six working fusion prototypes and claims it is world’s first private fusion company to achieve 100-million-degree plasma temperatures. Currently, the company is building its seventh prototype, Polaris, which is expected to be the first to demonstrate electricity generated from fusion.

With its recycling-based production method, Nucor is already one of the cleanest steelmakers in the world. The circular nature of recycling scrap in electric arc furnaces means that Nucor’s steel mills have a greenhouse gas emissions intensity that is three times lower than the average extractive blast furnace steelmaking plants. Further, Nucor was the first major industrial company to join the UN 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy Compact, which is aimed at accelerating the decarbonization of the world’s electricity systems and ensuring access to clean and affordable electricity.

“Nucor continues to position itself as a leader in developing clean energy solutions to decarbonize the industrial sector. This agreement with Helion, along with recent investments in clean energy, can change the entire energy landscape and forever change the world, embracing a clean energy future we could have hardly imagined a few years ago,” said Leon Topalian, Chair, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Nucor Corporation. “We believe in the technology Helion is building and are proud to make this investment.”

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Nuclear Fusion / US Aims For Pilot Commercial Plant Within A Decade – Granholm

(NucNet) US energy secretary Jennifer Granholm has announced the Biden administration’s ambitious goal of establishing a commercial nuclear fusion facility within the next decade as part of the nation’s shift towards clean energy.

During an interview with Associated Press in Vienna, Granholm expressed optimism about achieving president Biden’s vision of commercial fusion within a decade, stating that it is within the “realm of possibility”.

In August 2023, US scientists achieved net energy gain in a nuclear fusion reaction for the second time since a historic breakthrough in December last year in the quest to find a near-limitless, safe and clean source of energy.

Professor Dennis Whyte, director of the Plasma Science and Fusion Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was quoted by Business Insider as saying that the US has “a smart approach” on fusion energy advancing research and design by a number of companies working on a demonstration plan within a decade.

“It does not guarantee a particular company will get there, but we have multiple shots on goal,” Whyte said.

Nuclear fusion operates by subjecting hydrogen atoms to immense pressure, causing them to merge into helium and release vast amounts of energy and heat. Unlike conventional nuclear reactions, fusion does not produce radioactive waste. Advocates of nuclear fusion say it is a potential replacement for fossil fuels and traditional energy sources, although carbon-free energy from fusion has yet to be achieved.

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Saudi Arabia Updates Plans for Nuclear Energy

(WNN) Saudi Arabia has announced it intends to move towards implementing full International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nuclear safeguards as it works towards building its first nuclear power plant.

In a statement to the 67th International Atomic Energy Agency General Conference, Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud reiterated the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s intention to develop “peaceful uses for nuclear energy across various fields.”

“In this regard, the Kingdom has decided recently to rescind the Small Quantities Protocol and implement the full Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement. The Kingdom is working, within the framework of its national ecosystem, to establish the necessary mechanisms for this full implementation, following best international practices and experiences. The Kingdom is also working closely with the Agency to leverage its expertise and the advisory services it provides in the field of implementing safeguards to develop the national infrastructure and human capabilities required to support this transition.”

Prince Abdulaziz did not say whether Saudi Arabia planned to sign on tgo the IAEA’s Additional Protocol, which allows for more wide-ranging and intrusive checks such as snap inspections.

All non-nuclear-weapon states party to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) are required to conclude Comprehensive Safeguards Agreements (CSAs) with the IAEA and undertake to accept IAEA safeguards on all nuclear material in all peaceful nuclear activities within its territory, under its jurisdiction or carried out under its control anywhere.

Many states that have very limited quantities of nuclear material have concluded Small Quantities Protocols – or SQPs – to their CSAs. These protocols reduce the burden of safeguards implementation for states with little or no nuclear activities.

The minister also reiterated Saudi Arabia’s plans to operate a regional cooperation centre with the IAEA to develop human capabilities in the areas of preparedness and response to radiological and nuclear emergencies, and other regulatory aspects at national, regional, and international levels.

Saudi Arabia has established the Nuclear Energy Holding Company to act as the country’s nuclear developer, and according to the 2023 edition of World Nuclear Association’s Nuclear Fuel Report, plans initially to build two 1400 MW nuclear reactors with a goal of increasing nuclear capacity to 17 GWe by 2040.

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