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Project Pele
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<h2 id="initial-contracts">Initial contracts</h2> <p>On 9 March 2020, the Department awarded three development contracts,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> to: </p> <ul><li><a href="/facts/BWX_Technologies/tBvvT5D7">BWX Technologies</a>, of <a href="/facts/Virginia/g2kucGdn">Virginia</a>, for $13.5 million;</li> <li><a href="/facts/Westinghouse_Electric_Corporation/Nln2BzI3">Westinghouse Government Services</a> of <a href="/facts/Washington%2c_D.C./enXPK156">Washington, D.C.</a> for $11.95 million; and</li> <li><a href="/facts/X-energy/VMb0dJ5Q">X-energy</a> of <a href="/facts/Maryland/tVy9fC1n">Maryland</a>, for $14.3 million.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a></li></ul> <p>The two-year engineering design competition is for a small nuclear micro-reactor in the 1-5 megawatt (<a href="/facts/Watt/VK8oqRrm">MWe</a>) power range.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="development">Development</h2> <p>Out of the initial three contracts - BWX Technologies, Westinghouse Government Services and X-energy - only BWX Technologies and X-energy were selected in 2021 to develop a final design for a prototype mobile microreactor under the Project Pele initiative,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a> and then in June 2022 BWXT was awarded a contract by the US Department of Defense (DOD) Strategic Capabilities Office (SCO) to build the prototype and deliver it by 2024. The estimated cost of this prototype is approximately 300 million USD.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a> In December 2022, BWXT started the TRISO fuel production at BWX Technologies Inc's Lynchburg facility in Virginia.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a> </p><p>The envisaged reactor is intended to be deployable by road, rail, aircraft, or sea. It will be capable of quickly being brought on load, and be <a href="/facts/Inherently_safe/NVp3Jq2q">inherently safe</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a> <i>Information from: <a href="/facts/US_Army_Futures_Command/2phbx7bb">US Army Futures Command</a></i> </p> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Akademik_Lomonosov/5AKbaCnl">Akademik Lomonosov</a>, a Russian floating power plant with two 32 MWe reactors</li> <li><a href="/facts/Army_Nuclear_Power_Program/kUmAp8Gr">Army Nuclear Power Program</a>, a similar US project in the 1960's</li></ul> <h2 id="notes">Notes</h2> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>Pentagon awards contracts to design mobile nuclear reactor Aaron Mehta, DefenseNews, 2020-03-09 <a href="https://www.defensenews.com/smr/nuclear-arsenal/2020/03/09/pentagon-to-award-mobile-nuclear-reactor-contracts-this-week/" target="_blank">https://www.defensenews.com/smr/nuclear-arsenal/2020/03/09/pentagon-to-award-mobile-nuclear-reactor-contracts-this-week/</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>A New Era for Deep Space Exploration and Development July 2020 <a href="https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/A-New-Era-for-Space-Exploration-and-Development-07-23-2020.pdf" target="_blank">https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/A-New-Era-for-Space-Exploration-and-Development-07-23-2020.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>DOD Awards Contracts for Development of a Mobile Microreactor, media release, US Department of Defense, 2020-03-09 <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2105863/dod-awards-contracts-for-development-of-a-mobile-microreactor/" target="_blank">https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2105863/dod-awards-contracts-for-development-of-a-mobile-microreactor/</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>DOD Awards Contracts for Development of a Mobile Microreactor, media release, US Department of Defense, 2020-03-09 <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2105863/dod-awards-contracts-for-development-of-a-mobile-microreactor/" target="_blank">https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2105863/dod-awards-contracts-for-development-of-a-mobile-microreactor/</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>Pentagon awards contracts to design mobile nuclear reactor Aaron Mehta, DefenseNews, 2020-03-09 <a href="https://www.defensenews.com/smr/nuclear-arsenal/2020/03/09/pentagon-to-award-mobile-nuclear-reactor-contracts-this-week/" target="_blank">https://www.defensenews.com/smr/nuclear-arsenal/2020/03/09/pentagon-to-award-mobile-nuclear-reactor-contracts-this-week/</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>"BWXT and X-Energy selected to develop Project Pele mobile microreactor : New Nuclear - World Nuclear News". www.world-nuclear-news.org. Retrieved 2022-12-22. <a href="https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/BWXT-and-X-Energy-selected-to-develop-Project-Pele" target="_blank">https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/BWXT-and-X-Energy-selected-to-develop-Project-Pele</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>"BWX Technologies selected to build Project Pele microreactor : New Nuclear - World Nuclear News". www.world-nuclear-news.org. Retrieved 2022-12-22. <a href="https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/BWX-Technologies-selected-to-build-Project-Pele-mi" target="_blank">https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/BWX-Technologies-selected-to-build-Project-Pele-mi</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>"BWXT starts fuel production for microreactor : Uranium & Fuel - World Nuclear News". world-nuclear-news.org. Retrieved 2022-12-22. <a href="https://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/BWXT-starts-fuel-production-for-microreactor" target="_blank">https://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/BWXT-starts-fuel-production-for-microreactor</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>It will use TRISO fuel[7] (2022)—Idaho National Laboratory will assemble a Project Pele transportable nuclear reactor, and test it for up to three years;[8] if test performance warrants it, this type of reactor will generate a nominal 2 MWe (1 to 5 MWe— megaWatts, electrical) for up to 3 years, for isolated areas such as the Arctic, or for an island;[9] the reactor will be gas-cooled;[10][11][12] the fuel will be high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU);[13] experiments for handling the nuclear fuel will be performed at Idaho National Labs Transient Reactor Test Facility (TREAT), or the Hot Fuel Examination Facility (HFEF) during the three year test period.[12] Mobile Microreactor startup testing at the Materials and Fuels Complex (MFC), or at the Critical Infrastructure Test Range Complex (CITRC).[12] Assembling, operating, and disassembling, and transporting the Mobile Microreactor at the MFC, or at the CITRC.[12] Transporting the disassembled mobile microreactor to temporary storage at the Radioactive Scrap and Waste Facility (RSWF), or at the Outdoor Radioactive Storage Area (ORSA).[12] Potentially conducting mobile microreactor and spent nuclear fuel post-irradiation examination (PIE) and disposition at Idaho National Lab.[12] Produce reliable electrical power on an electrical grid that is separate from the public utility grid at Idaho National Lab.[12] <a href="/wiki/Nuclear_fuel#TRISO_fuel" target="_blank">/wiki/Nuclear_fuel#TRISO_fuel</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>