What are microreactors?

Microreactors — typically under 20 MW, often transportable and able to run for years without refuelling — could bring clean, reliable power to places the grid can't easily reach: remote communities, mines, disaster zones, data centers, and military bases. The US Army's Project Pele and Janus programs are pushing hard, aiming to power a base around 2028.

Their cost per kilowatt is high, so they're labelled contested — but in the places they target, the alternative is expensive, dirty diesel, and the strategic value is real. With defense funding and surging data-center demand behind them, microreactors are one of the fastest-moving frontiers in energy.