Owners and leadership of TerraPower met in Kemmerer on Thursday, October 15 to provide an update on the construction process of Kemmerer Unit 1, the Natrium Nuclear Power Plan currently under construction in southern Lincoln County.

In attendance from TerraPower included Bill Gates, Founder and Chairman of the Board, Chris Levesque, President and CEO, and Andy Chrusciel, Director of Construction. Elected officials including Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon and U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) were in attendance, along with Utah Governor Spencer Cox, Idaho Governor Brad Little and other elected officials from all three states. Members of the media were also invited to attend to cover the event and presentation.

Following a brief update from Levesque, Gates and Chrusciel, the group was taken into the Test & Fill facility which is currently under construction. Then group members were taken to the excavation site where the nuclear island will eventually be constructed.

“Wyoming continues to prove we are an energy powerhouse. From the extraction of yellow cake to the production of clean, efficient nuclear energy to power America’s future, Wyoming is on the forefront,” Governor Gordon said.  “It was my pleasure to join my fellow western governors and our counterparts in the United States Senate for this tour of the next phase of a new generation nuclear power plant.”

“The United States needs more reliable baseload power now. Nuclear power is key to meeting that demand. Wyoming is America’s energy powerhouse. As the country’s top uranium producer, Wyoming is the ideal place to build TerraPower’s advanced nuclear reactor,” said Senator Barrasso. “Modern nuclear infrastructure like the Natrium Reactor will provide safe, affordable, and reliable energy. It was exciting to see the progress being made on the construction of the Kemmerer Unit 1 Reactor. This groundbreaking project will create jobs and expand energy-driven economic development in Wyoming.”

The sodium facility will be used to test and demonstrate the performance of first-of-a-kind equipment prior to operations in the reactor plant.  The facility is 30,000 square feet, 110 feet tall, 170 feet of working height and will have over 300 tonnes of liquid sodium for testing reactor components before they are installed in the Natrium reactor.

Below is video of the complete presentation along with interviews with Governor Mark Gordon, Senator John Barrasso and Chris Levesque and images of the event.