US-based Aalo Atomics has revealed that it had signed a contract in July with Urenco for the supply of enriched uranium. The fuel will be delivered no later than the first quarter of 2026. Earlier in September, Aalo broke ground for its Aalo-X experimental extra modular nuclear reactor (XMR) at Idaho National Laboratory (INL). This came just two weeks after Aalo was selected by the US Department of Energy (DOE) to participate in President Trump’s Nuclear Reactor Pilot Program. Aalo is intending to complete construction of Aalo-X – described as a sodium-cooled reactor – and to achieve criticality by July 2026. Aalo is also developing the Aalo Pod – a 50 MWe extra modular reactor (XMR), purpose-built to provide scalable on-site power for modern data centres.
“The enriched uranium being supplied to Aalo by Urenco is an exciting catalyst on our path to criticality in 2026. Not only is the uranium available immediately, but it is also completely scalable, providing us with the ability to deploy Aalo Pods for data centres again and again at gigawatt scale, keeping pace with demand,” said Aalo Atomics Co-founder & CTO Yasir Arafat.
Urenco is providing Aalo with 5% enrichment low enriched uranium (LEU), which will be fabricated into uranium dioxide (UO2) as the final fuel form factor for the Aalo-X. “We have been impressed with Aalo’s unique approach of building fully modular nuclear plants, its thoughtfulness in how to execute its vision and its commitment to speed to market,” said Alison Poortman, VP, Advanced Fuels, Commercial, North America, Urenco. “We look forward to helping the company reach criticality next year and being part of the Aalo mission for many years to come.”
In June, Arafat explained that Aalo had revised its original plans to use uranium zirconium hydride (UZrH) fuel and would, instead, use “proven and economically favourable 8% enriched uranium dioxide (UO2). “Leveraging the established nuclear fuel supply chain allows us to scale our Aalo Pod deployments rapidly through efficient mass production, minimising the risk of supply disruptions,” he noted.
He said Aalo had recently visited Urenco’s Almelo plant in the Netherlands, which enriches uranium up to approximately 5%. “It deeply impressed upon us the extraordinary challenges involved in establishing new enrichment pathways, particularly for higher enrichments like high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU), which requires significant new infrastructure and investment,” he noted.
In the past few months, the Aalo-X experimental power plant started the Conceptual Design Review involving over 40 experts, secured official site allocation from the US Department of Energy’s Idaho Operations Office (DOE-ID), and received an Environmental Assessment Determination from the DOE, which expedites the environmental review process. It remains to be seen. However, whether a sodium-cooled fast reactor can go from conceptual design to criticality in one year.
