TerraPower, the advanced nuclear company backed by SK Group as its second-largest shareholder, has received approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to build a commercial advanced nuclear reactor—the first such approval for a small modular reactor in the United States.
According to SK Innovation on Wednesday, TerraPower will begin full-scale construction of the world's first commercial SMR plant in Wyoming following the NRC approval. This marks the first new commercial nuclear plant construction in the U.S. in a decade. TerraPower aims to accelerate construction with a target operation date of 2030.
SK Group has strengthened its partnership with TerraPower to secure future power supply chains. In August 2022, SK Inc. and SK Innovation jointly invested $250 million (approximately 370 billion won) in TerraPower, becoming the second-largest shareholder. The two sides continue to collaborate on SMR technology commercialization and global business expansion.