{"id":242,"date":"2026-05-26T20:46:31","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T20:46:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/growtooele.com\/?page_id=242"},"modified":"2026-05-26T22:50:33","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T22:50:33","slug":"data-center-the-nuclear-questions","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/growtooele.com\/?page_id=242","title":{"rendered":"Data center the nuclear questions"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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The nuclear question<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Why advanced nuclear has entered the data center conversation, what’s proposed in Tooele County, and what’s still unresolved.<\/p><\/div><\/section>

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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 \u2014 a newer generation of reactor designs \u2014 at the center of Utah’s energy planning.<\/p>

Tooele County is directly involved. The state has announced its intent to apply for a federal\u00a0Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus<\/strong>\u00a0in 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.<\/p>

How nuclear entered the data center conversation<\/h2>

In late 2024, the Utah Office of Energy Development launched\u00a0Operation Gigawatt<\/strong>, 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.<\/p>

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.<\/p>

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.<\/p>

What “advanced nuclear” actually means<\/h2>

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:<\/p>

Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).<\/strong>\u00a0Roughly one-third the size of a traditional reactor. Built in factories in standardized modules and assembled on site. Typical output: 50 to 300 megawatts.<\/p>

Microreactors.<\/strong>\u00a0Much smaller still \u2014 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.<\/p>

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.<\/p>

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.<\/p>

Operation Windlord and the Ward 250<\/h2>

Operation Windlord<\/strong>\u00a0is the name associated with the transport of an experimental microreactor \u2014 referred to as the\u00a0Ward 250<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014 into Utah for testing. Reporting and public statements have placed the activity in Emery County, in connection with the\u00a0San Rafael Energy Research Center<\/strong>.<\/p>

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.<\/p>

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.<\/p>

The proposed Tooele County nuclear campus<\/h2>

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.<\/p>

Potential benefits<\/h2>

Continuous, low-carbon power.<\/strong>\u00a0Unlike 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.<\/p>

Smaller land footprint.<\/strong>\u00a0Per megawatt produced, nuclear uses less land than solar or wind farms.<\/p>

Lower water use than evaporative-cooled facilities<\/strong>\u00a0for some designs (gas-cooled and heat-pipe microreactors in particular).<\/p>

Federal investment.<\/strong>\u00a0A federal innovation campus would bring significant construction activity, long-term federal employment, and ancillary economic development.<\/p>

Domestic energy and supply chain.<\/strong>\u00a0Federal interest in advanced nuclear is partly driven by a goal of reducing reliance on foreign-controlled supply chains for fuel and components.<\/p>

Open questions and concerns<\/h2>

Waste.<\/strong>\u00a0Advanced 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 \u2014 on-site, in interim facilities, or eventually elsewhere \u2014 is an unresolved question for any new reactor.<\/p>

Safety and emergency planning.<\/strong>\u00a0Advanced 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.<\/p>

Water use.<\/strong>\u00a0Depends entirely on the design. Some advanced reactors use very little water; others use significant amounts. Specific figures should be available before any project advances.<\/p>

Oversight and transparency.<\/strong>\u00a0Advanced 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.<\/p>

Pace of deployment.<\/strong>\u00a0Several 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.<\/p>

Connection to data center demand.<\/strong>\u00a0If a reactor is built primarily to power a specific data center, the question of who pays for what \u2014 and who benefits \u2014 becomes important. Public hearings on co-located projects will need to make these arrangements clear.<\/p>

How this connects back to data centers<\/h2>

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 \u2014 including in Tooele County.<\/p>

Residents who want to follow the nuclear conversation alongside the data center conversation can track:<\/p>