The U.S. Army to Deploy Micro Nuclear Reactors at Some Military Bases

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, August 27 - The U.S. Army announced on the 26th that it will deploy micro nuclear reactors at five military bases in the United States to provide reliable energy for military facilities that does not rely on the commercial power grid.

According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Army has selected five companies to deploy micro nuclear reactors at military bases in five states, including New York and Texas. Depending on the design plans of the different companies, each reactor will have a power generation capacity of 1 megawatt to 20 megawatts and can operate for several years without the need for additional nuclear fuel.

After the reactors are deployed, the aforementioned military bases will still be connected to the commercial power grid, and these reactors will not be responsible for the entire power supply of the bases. The Army and the relevant companies stated that in the event of a failure of the external power grid, the micro nuclear reactors can provide stable power to critical infrastructure at military bases. Currently, the U.S. Army primarily uses diesel as a backup energy source for critical infrastructure.

The U.S. Army will provide a total of up to $2.2 billion in contract funding to five nuclear technology companies for the construction and operation of the related reactors. The Army expects that more than 20 micro nuclear reactors will be built and put into operation.

U.S. President Trump signed an executive order in May 2025, calling for the acceleration of nuclear energy development. According to the relevant arrangements, the Army is required to start a nuclear reactor at a military base in the United States by no later than September 30, 2028.