The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has approved a construction permit for Kairos Power’s 35-MWth Hermes molten salt “non-power” demonstration reactor, which the firm has proposed to build at the East Tennessee Technology Park Heritage Center (ETTP) site in Oak Ridge.
The NRC on Dec. 12 directed staff to issue the construction permit for the test reactor and expects the permit to be issued by the end of the month. The NRC accepted Kairos’s construction permit application (CPA) for Hermes submitted under 10 CFR Part 50.21 (a class of licenses for medical therapy and research and development facilities) in November 2021. A vote on Tuesday follows a mandatory hearing on Oct. 19, during which the commission authorized the NRC’s Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation to issue the permit. The NRC, notably, wrapped up its final safety evaluation for the demonstration reactor within 18 months, well ahead of schedule.
