Bret Kugelmass of Last Energy aims to build his first ten inexpensive, off-the-shelf fission reactors in eastern Europe. We’re talking old-fashioned fission technology here—the kind that for decades has been used to generate energy by splitting uranium atoms apart. It’s the opposite of nuclear fusion, which is how the sun generates energy: by fusing hydrogen atoms. For decades fusion research has stalled because scientists could not coax more energy out of fusion reactions than it took to trigger them. Recent breakthroughs show promise, but even in the most optimistic scenarios commercial fusion is many years away.

Leaning into science is one way to make things easier; picking his regulatory shots is another. Although Kugelmass is working with federal agencies to get export permissions for Last’s nuclear technology, he isn’t yet asking for approval to build his plants in the U.S. Instead, he hopes to have his first 20-megawatt reactor (enough to power 20,000 homes) up and running by 2025 in Poland, which has been getting 70% of its power from burning coal since Russian natural gas supplies were cut off. Poland has agreed to buy the electricity from 10 of the units, which Kugelmass hopes to make for $100 million each, under a long-term contract that requires Last Energy to operate the reactors and take on the risk of cost overruns.

0:00 Why Nuclear Energy?
1:18 Introducing Last Energy & Bret Kugelmass
3:44 Key To Success? Resources That Are Already Available
5:04 Productizing Nuclear Means Not Reinventing The Wheel
6:55 How Did An Entrepreneur Get Into Nuclear Physics?
8:16 Can Nuclear Be Affordable?
9:10 The Nuclear Landscape In Eastern Europe
10:04 What Is This Technology Going To Cost?
11:11 The Difference Between Last Energy And Any Utility Company
12:31 What About Nuclear Waste And Overall Safety?
14:23 The Final Obstacles Facing Last Energy
16:04 Inside Last Energy's IP
17:43 Why Work To Move Countries Away From Coal?
18:58 Are There Health Risks To Citizens Who Live Near These Microreactors?
19:26 Is There Interest From The US?
19:50 How Many Microreactors Can Last Energy Produce, And How Clean Can Production Be?
22:24 Kugelmass On His Rise As A Competitor In The Industry And Next Steps In Texas

Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2023/02/03/inside-the-audacious-plan-to-use-10000-nuclear-microreactors-to-wean-the-world-off-oil/?sh=424aff0c6536

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