Buckley Space Force Base in Colorado and Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana could be among the first Department of the Air Force bases to be powered using small nuclear reactors by the end of the decade.
The Air Force on April 8 announced it, along with the Defense Innovation Unit, had selected the two bases as potential locations as part of the Advanced Nuclear Power for Installations program.
That program aims to deploy advanced nuclear microreactors, which will be owned and operated by contractors, on Air Force installations to make sure they can keep functioning even if outside power sources are cut off. The Air Force said this will strengthen national security by making sure bases have secure and reliable power, which would be more protected from cyberattacks and natural disasters than public utility grids
The bases will be matched up with a vendor whose technology best suits its energy needs, the Air Force said. The reactors are intended to be deployed by 2030 or earlier.
“By advancing the use of next-generation nuclear energy, the [Department of the Air Force] is strengthening the energy security of our power projection platforms and contributing to long-term national energy leadership,” Nancy Balkus, the Air Force’s deputy assistant secretary for infrastructure, energy and environment, said in the statement. “This initiative represents a critical step in ensuring the department remains the world’s premier Air Force and Space Force.”
Buckley and Malmstrom were chosen as the top candidates for a mini-reactor because of their utility infrastructure, availability of land, and the critical missions the bases perform. Malmstrom is home of the 341st Missile Wing and operates many of the Air Force’s Minuteman III nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles. Buckley’s missions include providing strategic and theater missile warnings to the United States and international partners, as well as space surveillance operations and space communications missions.
The Air Force said subject matter experts from the department and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory evaluated the bases’ environment, nuclear safety, and energy integration as it considered which bases should get reactors.
The Air Force said this effort is separate from another nuclear microreactor program in the works at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska. The Air Force plans to award a contract to Oklo, Inc., to develop and operate Eielson’s reactor.
In late March, the Air Force briefly posted a request for information seeking information from companies on their small nuclear reactor capabilities. But less than two weeks later, the Air Force had withdrawn that RFI, saying it instead decided to focus on pursuing other existing nuclear projects.