Big power, small package

With next-gen nuclear, it’s not the size that matters

As the price tag of power grows in New Hampshire, so does the expectation that demand will grow in the state as well as the region.

So new sources and reimagined sources have entered into the conversation, including whether New Hampshire will go big into nuclear generation.

Or maybe small? Small, as in reactors of about 10 megawatts, not even 1% of output of Seabrook Station.

As a new energy future emerges, proponents of the next generation of nuclear power say it’s not the size that matters. They envision nuclear reactors of about 3,500 square feet, about the size of a five-bedroom house and about an acre of land.

They could power a factory or housing development without connecting to the grid, supporters say.

“New Hampshire is a high-tech state with a nuclear future,” said U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright in a visit last month to the state.

“There’s a generation of plants coming out.

We’re going to build new big plants in the U.S., but these new small modular reactors, for local communities or for particular businesses, I’m very excited about that.”

During a visit last month to a New Hampshire Co-op office, Wright predicted that costs for the plants will drop as they scale up. As for manufacturing, they can provide high-temperature, process heat that is necessary to manufacture everything from plastics to solar panels, he said.

Last month, the topic of small nuclear was included in the Freedom Summit, a two-day conference of tech executives, engineers and business leaders in Manchester to delve into issues such as housing, energy and the future of the state.

New Hampshire is the only New England state without a moratorium on nuclear power, and one of only two states — Connecticut is the other — with a working reactor, said Bill Spellane, cofounder and chief executive of StarCube. The New Hampshire startup wants to build small nuclear reactors and locate them in the state.

Spellane sees a nearly limitless future for small reactors. He predicts his reactors will eventually produce power at 4 cents a kilowatt-hour, which is about the current wholesale price for New England power in low-use seasons.

Multiple reactors, located adjacent to data centers, would help to alleviate fears of artificial intelligence, at least the energy fears, he said.

And they would be safe. During his presentation, Spellane showed slides of Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s 6-megawatt reactor located in an industrial area in Cambridge, Mass.

“What people were afraid of in 1970 hasn’t materialized,” he said.

But Spellane and Wright are spreading a gospel in a state historically agnostic, if not hostile, to nuclear power.

“This is still the state where the Clamshell Alliance drove an electric utility into bankruptcy,” said Donald Kreis, the New Hampshire consumer advocate.

Yet, it’s not all anti-nuke. Kreis noted that Gov. Kelly Ayotte has been open about her support of the next generation of nuclear power. And she has appointed two members of the Public Utility Commission and a commissioner of energy, who would conceivably support those efforts.

“If your overall objective is let’s bring nuclear to New Hampshire, you’d have to think it’s pretty favorable,” Kreis said.

Spellane said community opposition to nuclear power will be the company’s biggest challenge.

Something’s going to have to give eventually; opposition would disintegrate at $1 price per kilowatt-hour, he said.

The latest retail energy prices, which is only a portion of the total residential electric bill, run 13 to 14 cents retail, and do not include delivery costs.

Spellane believes initial small reactors will eventually generate electricity for less than 15 cents a kilowatt-hour. He eventually sees 4 cents a kilowatt-hour, which is about the spot-market wholesale price of New Hampshire electricity in low-demand months.

“We’re going to build an assembly line so each iteration teaches the next,” he said. “We’re going to ride that cost curve down. The target’s 4 cents.”

Kreis said 4-cent power would be impressive if StarCube could pull it off.

StarCube is looking for a New Hampshire location to start manufacturing reactors, Spellane said. And he is in talks with customers who are interested in buying a reactor.

Spellane said StarCube is funded with venture capital and would not discuss specific amounts raised. But he said they have raised capital to hit company milestones, and expects they will be able to keep raising capital as StarCube meets future milestones.

Jeremy Hitchcock, a venture capitalist who cofounded and later sold the internet performance company Dyn, is listed as co-founder and chairman of the company.

During the first half of the 2020s, energy consumption was basically flat in New England, while prices steadily rose.

But with a reshoring of manufacturing in the United States and the massive demands of AI, officials see a growing need for power.

“We’ve got to grow massively our electrical capacity,” Wright said.

The Pulse

“The Pulse” is an exclusive feature of NH Business Review that examines local and national data to track New Hampshire’s economy.

Each month, the series examines an economic trend based on the latest data. On a quarterly basis, “The Pulse” will report key economic indicators such as employment, inflation and economic growth for the New Hampshire economy for a more expansive review that includes several informational graphics.

“The Pulse” focuses on three key indicators: prices, output and labor. It will also feature a wild card category. One of the six will change every quarter in an effort to capture data that gives additional insight.