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US-based nuclear energy startup Nano Nuclear is aiming to get its partnership with the UAE back on track after the Iran war delayed plans to identify sites to develop small modular reactors in the Gulf nation, its chief executive told Semafor.
Nano Nuclear is also in early stage talks about potential investment from a firm linked to UAE National Security Adviser Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed, as it looks to fund the rollout of its technology, James Walker said in an interview.
“The UAE wants to push this forward very fast, but we have been waiting for the Iran conflict to die down before we go in there and start working on site selection and feasibility studies,” said Walker.
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The US nuclear firm signed an agreement with EHC Investment, which is controlled by the Sheikh Tahnoon-chaired International Holding Company, in late February just days before the Iran war started. The agreement involved a commitment to bring Nano Nuclear’s technology to the UAE as the country looked to build new sources of power for its investment in data centers, or for remote oil and gas facilities.
Nano Nuclear had intended to send a team to the UAE straight after signing the memorandum of understanding, Walker said. The firm is now hoping to do so later this year.
Talks on a potential investment from Abu Dhabi are, meanwhile, at initial stages but a deal to accelerate Nano Nuclear’s growth — particularly if the UAE commissions the company to build a power plant in the country — and the possibility of dual listing the company in Abu Dhabi has been discussed, Walker said.
“Demand from the Gulf market could become very large, very quickly,” he said, adding that the company has also had some talks with the Saudi government about the potential to build SMRs in the kingdom.
Abu Dhabi is pouring billions of dollars into artificial intelligence investments, including building vast data centers, as it looks to become an AI hub. Companies building SMRs are trying to position themselves as one part of the solution to the rapidly growing energy demand from data centers, yet the technology is still nascent with only a handful under construction or operating.
Nano Nuclear’s first reactor, in the US state of Illinois,will start producing power in 2030, Walker said. The firm is listed in the US and has a market capitalization of about $1 billion. It’s one of several microreactor companies aiming to commercialize SMRs.
Notable
- SMRs are emerging as the UAE’s next big push in alternative energy, Tareq Alotaiba wrote for Semafor in Nov. 2024.