Exclusive: Why Antares is bringing nuclear power to Fort Bragg
The U.S. Army and the Defense Innovation Unit have selected Antares to build and operate nuclear microreactors at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, chief executive Jordan Bramble told Axios. Why it matters: The military's sky-high energy demand — for reusable batteries, computer farms, radars , housing, weapons and more — is an ideal pressure test for nuclear, which has mounted a comeback in recent…
The U.S. Army has chosen Antares to construct and manage nuclear microreactors at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, according to CEO Jordan Bramble. This initiative is part of the Army's Janus program, a significant effort to address the military's immense energy requirements. The Antares arrangement is one of several announced under the Janus program, which is a multibillion-dollar response to a White House executive order from last year.
Bramble explained that the military has been in a challenging position regarding energy for the past decade, needing a more operational approach for installations within the U.S. He emphasized that nuclear power, with its high capacity factor, is the best option for ensuring critical operations can continue without reliance on the grid or civilian supply chains.
Fort Bragg, home to the XVIII Airborne Corps, Army special operations, and Western Hemisphere commands, houses tens of thousands of personnel. Antares has not disclosed the exact contract value but stated that the total value of its work for the Army, Air Force, and Space Force is on the order of $1 billion and growing rapidly. The company recently raised $470 million in a Series C funding round.
The Antares Mark-0 reactor achieved criticality on June 4 at Idaho National Laboratory, marking the first such achievement for the Energy Department's Reactor Pilot Program. The nuclear microreactors will be delivered in three stages, each designed with TRISO fuel, originally developed for Project Pele, a Pentagon initiative. Other Janus awardees include BWXT Advanced Technologies at Fort Campbell, General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems at Fort Hood, Radiant at Fort Benning, and Westinghouse Government Services at Fort Drum.
These diverse companies represent a significant step forward for microreactors and advanced reactors in the United States, according to the Army's principal deputy assistant secretary for installations, energy, and environment. Ongoing discussions will focus on waste disposition pathways.
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