TerraPower

Wyoming is eyeing the nuclear industry to keep young adults from leaving. The state is giving almost $2 million to Western Wyoming Community College to develop a nuclear associate degree – the first of its kind in the state.

Almost three years ago, an unlikely relationship formed between the declining coal town of Kemmerer and one of the richest people in the world: Bill Gates. That’s because his nuclear company, TerraPower, announced it’d chosen Kemmerer for a “first of its kind” power plant. It promised to pump life back into the economy. But unless you’re deeply embedded in the energy world, it mostly just felt like a lot of talk to residents – until this month, when the project broke ground.

Uranium mining is picking up in the United States – this comes after years of very little production – and it could help a first of its kind nuclear power plant project in southwest Wyoming.

The proposed nuclear facility near Kemmerer is nearing the construction phase. But it still has to be approved by the feds and they’re holding meetings to let residents in on that process.

The nuclear facility project that is planned for the Kemmerer area has a key issue: it lacks a fuel source. But officials say they now have an answer to that problem.

A small coal town community in southwest Wyoming was privy to a preview of plans for a proposed, first of its kind nuclear plant. The TerraPower nuclear plant is scheduled to open near Kemmerer by 2030. The event brought several officials to town – including a ‘celebrity’ appearance. Following this closely is the Casper Star Tribune’s energy reporter Nicole Pollack. She spoke with Wyoming Public Radio’s Caitlin Tan.

The opening date is being delayed for the nuclear plant that is slated to replace the Naughton coal plant near Kemmerer.The start date will likely be pushed back two years to 2030, according to a press release from the nuclear plant developer TerraPower. The main reason is Russia’s war in Ukraine, as Russia is the only commercial supplier of the highly enriched uranium (HALEU) the plant needs to run.

TerraPower is a nuclear company started by Bill Gates, and it is building its first nuclear reactor, with a technology called Natrium, in Kemmerer. It will be the first of its kind not only in Wyoming but in the U.S. TerraPower’s C-E-O Chris Levesque recently sat down with Wyoming Public Radio’s Caitlin Tan to explain the project and what is to come.

The nuclear project in Kemmerer has secured more funding, all but guaranteeing its development.The TerraPower project, which is Bill Gates’ nuclear power company, raised $750 million in private investments. The money will support the development of the nuclear power plant in Kemmerer, making it the first of its kind in the state.

As Wyoming sets its sights on nuclear development, a team of University of Wyoming researchers will study how one project impacts environmental justice.