SK Innovation and TerraPower have signed a key agreement to explore the global expansion and domestic application of TerraPower's next-generation sodium-cooled small modular reactor (SMR) 'Natrium.'
On August 14, SK Innovation announced that CEO Choo Hyung-wook and TerraPower CEO Chris Levesque met in Seoul to finalize the agreement on sodium SMR collaboration and the global market entry of the next-generation SMR.
The agreement includes plans for: expanding SK Innovation's participation in the SMR demonstration reactor and subsequent commercial projects being constructed by TerraPower in the U.S.; enhancing the domestic supply chain for SMRs; and jointly developing sodium SMR projects in South Korea and globally.
The two companies will comprehensively review regulatory, industrial, and power system conditions related to global business and will gradually specify the direction of the Korean sodium SMR business model, known as 'K-Sodium.' They also plan to expand participation from domestic research and design institutions and nuclear power equipment companies to utilize the domestic supply chain for key sodium SMR components and establish a Korean design and project execution system.
During a subsequent dinner, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and TerraPower Board Chair Bill Gates discussed the response to power demand from the expansion of AI data centers, the development direction of the next-generation nuclear power industry, and the potential for Korea-U.S. nuclear cooperation.
The sodium SMR is based on TerraPower's fourth-generation sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR). It combines a reactor with a molten salt-based thermal energy storage system (TES), allowing it to store heat produced by the reactor for use during peak demand, thus providing stable baseload power and output flexibility.
SK Innovation also plans to increase its participation in TerraPower's sodium SMR project 'Kemmerer Unit 1,' currently being developed in Wyoming, along with subsequent commercial projects.
The Kemmerer Unit 1 SMR project received construction approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in March, marking it as the first commercial advanced reactor approved in the U.S.
Additionally, the two companies agreed to jointly explore SMR projects in the U.S. that can be linked to policy and financial support from both Korea and the U.S. They will specify the feasibility of each project, funding, supply chain composition, and construction and operation plans, while also seeking collaboration with the U.S. government and relevant agencies.
This agreement allows SK Innovation to expand its role beyond being a strategic investor in TerraPower to directly participating in SMR business development and project execution.
Choo Hyung-wook, CEO of SK Innovation, stated, "This agreement is significant as it demonstrates our collaboration with TerraPower to explore the domestic application of sodium SMRs in response to power demand from AI data centers and to expand our global business. We will closely communicate with TerraPower to specify the direction of the K-Sodium business model and enhance our business development and operational capabilities through participation in U.S. projects, thereby expanding our entry into the global market."
Meanwhile, SK Innovation and SK Inc. became the second-largest shareholders of TerraPower in 2022 after jointly investing $250 million.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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