Nano Nuclear Energy $NNE signed an MOU with Hyundai Engineering to advance its KRONOS microreactor project at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The collaboration will focus on engineering, construction planning, supply chains, and U.S. manufacturing readiness, supporting Nano Nuclear’s long-term goal of commercializing modular nuclear reactors.

Before Valor Atomics builds nuclear reactors in a community, @isaiah_p_taylor says the team meets with local residents first to explain the costs and benefits and hear their feedback. "Valar has really taken community engagement an order of magnitude more seriously than any other nuclear company so far." "When we come into a community, we don't come in after the project and say, 'Here's how you get to know us because we're in your backyard now.' We actually go to the community first and explain the cost benefits and ask people, 'What do you think?' We try to get people to engage with it before we go and actually do something." "We host events, we host barbecues, and people are really excited to have us here. If you look at the surveys on nuclear versus data centers, interestingly, people are cool with the data center as long as you build a nuclear power plant first."

The US is restarting three nuclear reactors offline for years as AI data centers drive massive electricity demand. The Palisades plant in Michigan, Crane Clean Energy Center at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania, and Duane Arnold Energy Center in Iowa are expected to add a combined 2.25 GW. The US Department of Energy is providing up to $4.4 billion in loans to restart them. Microsoft and Google have signed agreements tied to the plants, as their AI and data center operations boost demand for reliable, carbon-free power.

SOUTH KOREA 🇰🇷 UNVEILS $120B US 🇺🇸 NUCLEAR PLAN AND $22.3B TEXAS GAS POWER PROJECT South Korea said it will invest $120B to build eight nuclear reactors in the US, two of them using its APR1400 design, though the specific projects haven't been decided. Seoul and Washington also launched a $22.3B gas power project in Texas that will supply 6.47 GW to AI data centers, with commercial operation expected by 2029. Seoul is also seeking stake investments by South Korean companies in Westinghouse, and the two countries will review an Alaska LNG pipeline and export terminal that will proceed only if commercial and legal conditions are met. Under a legally binding operating agreement, South Korea's US investments are capped at $20B a year, with profits split 50-50 until Korea recoups its principal on each project. South Korea's industry minister said the US has indicated its tariff rate on South Korean goods will stay at 15%, per Yonhap.

Hungary will restart the first of three nuclear reactors it was forced to shut down due to the record low level of the Danube river, as the country looks to recover from an unprecedented energy crisis.

China is leading the global nuclear race: China now has 39 nuclear reactors under construction, more than the next 12 countries combined. This is followed by India and Russia, at 8 and 7, respectively, less than half of China's total combined. China also has a much younger pipeline of nuclear projects, with reactors currently under construction averaging just ~2.8 years since work began. By comparison, the global average stands at ~5.8 years, inflated by long-delayed projects, such as India's 22-year construction timeline and Brazil's 16-year timeline. Meanwhile, the US currently has no large commercial nuclear reactors under construction. China is building the world's largest pipeline of nuclear reactors.