California-based Oklo on 3 December announced the launch of Aurora, an advanced fission clean energy plant design, also known as a fission battery.
The plant, which uses metal fuel, produces about 1.5MWe and can also produce usable heat. The design, integrating solar panels and local art, aims to illustrate the ability of advanced fission to integrate with renewables.
Oklo co-founder and CEO Jacob DeWitte said: “The Aurora is built on years of technology research, development, and demonstration done at the US national labs and universities, and work done by Oklo to make the Aurora possible. Oklo said the Aurora plant can produce power for decades without any need to refuel. It can also recycle fuel and ultimately convert nuclear waste to clean energy.
Oklo has been engaged in pre-application activities with the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission since 2016 for the Aurora design, and says it is preparing to submit its first licence application. The company has previously received federal cost-shared funding for technology development through the US Department of Energy's cost-shared Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) initiative.
