Data centers and nuclear power have entered the same conversation in Utah for a simple reason: the largest proposed facilities need enormous amounts of electricity, around the clock, year-round. Wind and solar can supply part of that demand, but not all of it on their own. Natural gas can fill the gap but produces emissions. That has put advanced nuclear — a newer generation of reactor designs — at the center of Utah’s energy planning.

Tooele County is directly involved. The state has announced its intent to apply for a federal Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus in northwest Tooele County, in the remote area near Delle, north of I-80. This page explains what’s being proposed, what advanced nuclear actually is, and what questions remain open.

How nuclear entered the data center conversation

In late 2024, the Utah Office of Energy Development launched Operation Gigawatt, a state initiative to roughly double Utah’s electricity production over ten years. The plan includes natural gas, geothermal, solar, battery storage, transmission upgrades, and advanced nuclear.

The reasoning, as state officials have described it: Utah’s population is growing, electrification is expanding, and AI and cloud computing are driving large new industrial loads. Existing generation cannot meet the projected demand without new investment.

Advanced nuclear is included because it produces continuous power, doesn’t emit carbon during operation, and uses far less land per megawatt than wind or solar.

What “advanced nuclear” actually means

Most people picture nuclear power as the large cooling towers of plants built in the 1970s and 1980s. Advanced nuclear refers to a newer set of designs that are smaller, modular, and built differently. There are two main categories being discussed in Utah:

Small Modular Reactors (SMRs). Roughly one-third the size of a traditional reactor. Built in factories in standardized modules and assembled on site. Typical output: 50 to 300 megawatts.

Microreactors. Much smaller still — often the size of a few shipping containers. Some are transportable. Typical output: 1 to 20 megawatts. Designed for remote sites, military bases, industrial campuses, and disaster response.

Both categories are regulated by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), use enriched uranium fuel, and produce radioactive waste that must be managed. The newer designs use different cooling methods (some use molten salt, gas, or heat pipes instead of water), and many include passive safety features that don’t require active intervention to shut down safely.

These are real technologies, but most designs are still in licensing, demonstration, or early deployment phases. Very few are operating commercially in the United States today.

Operation Windlord and the Ward 250

Operation Windlord is the name associated with the transport of an experimental microreactor — referred to as the Ward 250 — into Utah for testing. Reporting and public statements have placed the activity in Emery County, in connection with the San Rafael Energy Research Center.

This is separate from the proposed Tooele County nuclear campus, but it’s part of the same broader push to position Utah as a testing and deployment site for advanced nuclear technology. Emery County was selected because it already has energy infrastructure, transmission access, industrial zoning, and open land suitable for research-scale testing.

For Tooele County residents, the relevance is twofold: it shows the state is actively moving on advanced nuclear, and it offers an early example of what siting and permitting for these technologies looks like in practice.

The proposed Tooele County nuclear campus

The state has submitted an application for federal consideration. The site under discussion is roughly eight miles west of Delle, about 55 miles west of Salt Lake City International Airport. State officials have cited the area’s geology, arid climate, distance from population centers, and existing infrastructure as reasons for the selection.

Potential benefits

Continuous, low-carbon power. Unlike gas turbines, advanced reactors don’t emit carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, or particulate matter during operation. For a data center sited next to one, this can substantially reduce local air-quality impact compared to on-site gas generation.

Smaller land footprint. Per megawatt produced, nuclear uses less land than solar or wind farms.

Lower water use than evaporative-cooled facilities for some designs (gas-cooled and heat-pipe microreactors in particular).

Federal investment. A federal innovation campus would bring significant construction activity, long-term federal employment, and ancillary economic development.

Domestic energy and supply chain. Federal interest in advanced nuclear is partly driven by a goal of reducing reliance on foreign-controlled supply chains for fuel and components.

Open questions and concerns

Waste. Advanced reactors still produce radioactive waste, though in smaller quantities and sometimes in different forms than traditional reactors. The United States does not yet have a permanent national repository for high-level nuclear waste. Where waste is stored — on-site, in interim facilities, or eventually elsewhere — is an unresolved question for any new reactor.

Safety and emergency planning. Advanced reactor designs include passive safety features, but operational track records are short. Emergency response plans, evacuation zones, and coordination with local fire and health departments are areas where residents will reasonably want detail.

Water use. Depends entirely on the design. Some advanced reactors use very little water; others use significant amounts. Specific figures should be available before any project advances.

Oversight and transparency. Advanced nuclear is regulated federally by the NRC, but siting, zoning, and emergency response decisions involve state and county roles as well. Residents have asked how public input will be incorporated, particularly for designs that are new and unfamiliar.

Pace of deployment. Several of the technologies being discussed are still in licensing or early demonstration phases. Building schedules and cost estimates for first-of-a-kind reactors have historically been uncertain.

Connection to data center demand. If a reactor is built primarily to power a specific data center, the question of who pays for what — and who benefits — becomes important. Public hearings on co-located projects will need to make these arrangements clear.

How this connects back to data centers

The simple version: large data centers create large, steady electricity demand. Utah’s response is to expand generation across multiple sources, with advanced nuclear as one piece. Whether that piece grows quickly, slowly, or not at all depends on federal selection decisions, NRC licensing timelines, technology readiness, and public acceptance — including in Tooele County.

Residents who want to follow the nuclear conversation alongside the data center conversation can track:

• Utah Office of Energy Development (Operation Gigawatt updates)
• U.S. Department of Energy (Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus selections)
• U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (reactor licensing)
• Tooele County Council agendas and public hearings