US to build 'historic' nuclear plant to power 4.5 million homes

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has partnered with ENTRA1 Energy to develop up to 6 gigawatts (GW) of new nuclear power through the construction of six nuclear plants across TVA’s seven-state region. Each plant will use 12 NuScale Power Modules (NPM), a small modular reactor (SMR) technology that is the only US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)-approved SMR currently ready for commercial deployment. Together, these plants are expected to generate approximately 5.5 GW of electricity, enough to power around 4.5 million homes or 60 large-scale data centers. ENTRA1 Energy will finance, build, and own the plants, while TVA will purchase the generated power. The NuScale Power Module integrates the reactor core, steam generators, and pressurizer into a compact vessel, allowing factory production and shipment to sites, which can reduce costs and construction time compared to traditional nuclear plants. Each module produces 77 megawatts electric (M