NuScale: A Reactor’s Pale Bloom

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The United States, in a gesture of almost baroque ambition, is attempting to resuscitate its nuclear energies. A quadrupling of capacity by 2050, they declare – a pronouncement that hangs, rather prettily, in the air, alongside promises of ten new behemoths under construction by 2030. One wonders if they’ve accounted for the sheer inertia of such undertakings, the decades-long slumber of concrete and steel. Congress, predictably, has obliged with a disbursement of funds – $3.1 billion, plus repurposed coin – earmarked for the diminutive, modular reactors, these SMRs, and the more esoteric advanced reactor demonstration program. A veritable mint for atom-splitters, wouldn’t you agree?

Which brings us, inevitably, to NuScale Power (SMR 9.65%). The question isn’t merely whether this company is a ‘buy,’ but whether it’s a mirage, a shimmer on the otherwise bleak landscape of speculative investment. A rather delicate distinction, admittedly, one easily lost in the din of bullish pronouncements.

The Government’s Gilded Cage

Geopolitics, that perennial puppeteer, demands a fortified domestic energy industry. And nuclear, with its inconvenient truth of zero emissions and reliable, almost stubbornly consistent output, remains a tempting, if expensive, bauble. Last year, $800 million was tossed towards Generation III+ light water SMRs, awarded to the swift – Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and Holtec. NuScale, alas, was left to observe the proceedings, a curious position for a company hoping to lead the charge. They are, however, collaborating with TVA, the first utility bold enough to submit a construction permit application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for a modern SMR. A partnership, one suspects, built more on necessity than mutual admiration.

TVA, you see, is currently enamored with GE Vernova’s Hitachi BWRX-300, undergoing the NRC’s scrutiny. Yet, with a September 2025 agreement with ENTRA1 Energy to develop up to six gigawatts of nuclear power using NuScale’s modules, a curious duality emerges. A hedging of bets, perhaps? Or merely a display of bureaucratic profligacy? The mind reels, doesn’t it?

The repurposed $3.1 billion, destined for the advanced reactor demonstration program, aims to shepherd these reactors from theoretical sketches to operational reality. SMRs, high-temperature gas reactors, sodium-cooled fast reactors – a veritable menagerie of atomic ambition. And in this crowded field, NuScale possesses a singular advantage: it is the sole proprietor of an SMR with NRC standard design approval. A modest crown, perhaps, but a crown nonetheless, positioning it, at least theoretically, to compete for federal largesse.

A Reactor’s Pale Bloom

The government’s spending spree signals a broad bullishness for the nuclear industry, a commitment to rebuilding capacity. This, naturally, is a favorable sign for SMR companies like NuScale Power. But let us not mistake optimism for analysis. NuScale’s stock, currently languishing 70% below its 52-week high, presents a tempting, if treacherous, bargain. The company’s sole project, RoPower in Romania, remains tantalizingly undefined, a final investment decision postponed to late 2026 or 2027. The ENTRA1 deal with TVA, meanwhile, remains in its infancy, a promise yet to blossom.

The influx of government funding is undoubtedly a positive development, a fleeting ray of sunshine in a persistently overcast market. But NuScale, my dear reader, remains years, perhaps decades, away from commercial operations. It is, in the most charitable assessment, a highly speculative investment, a gamble on a future that may never fully materialize. A pale bloom, indeed, in the otherwise sterile garden of nuclear finance. Consider it, if you must, but do so with a healthy dose of skepticism, and a fully prepared exit strategy. The atom, after all, is a fickle mistress.

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2026-02-11 21:42