ORNL and Kairos Power expand molten salt reactor partnership

by Clarence Oxford
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 25, 2026
The Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Kairos Power have launched a 27 million dollar strategic partnership to speed development of a new generation of advanced nuclear reactors and help meet U.S. nuclear energy goals.

Under the agreement, ORNL will provide technical expertise and access to specialized facilities to review and evaluate key aspects of Kairos Power's fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature reactor design, which combines molten fluoride salt coolant with Tristructural ISOtropic (TRISO) fuel to deliver reliable power with robust inherent safety features.

ORNL will manufacture components for reactor development and testing and will assess the performance of coated particle fuel after irradiation under conditions representative of planned reactor operation, generating data that will support the design, construction and eventual operation of the Hermes demonstration reactors now being built in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and the later commercialization of the fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature reactor.

ORNL established the original proof-of-concept and performance of the world's first molten salt reactor 60 years ago and has continued to play a central role in the evolution of molten salt reactor technology, which uses salt instead of water as the primary coolant in nuclear systems.

"Providing the scientific basis for new technology is what we do at Oak Ridge National Laboratory," said ORNL Director Stephen Streiffer. "With energy demand expected to increase substantially by 2050, our continued partnerships with U.S. industry, including Kairos Power, are how we will bring more reliable, affordable energy to market."

The Department of Energy is committing up to 303 million dollars in risk reduction funding to Kairos Power's Hermes demonstration reactor through the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program to advance the company's molten salt reactor design toward commercial readiness.

"DOE's support has been instrumental in helping Kairos Power accelerate our path to technological maturity," said Ed Blandford, chief technology officer and co-founder of Kairos Power. "By collaborating with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, we gain access to decades of expertise and a unique set of capabilities that we couldn't find anywhere else. We are pleased to partner with the lab as we work to deploy safe, reliable advanced reactor technology that builds on Oak Ridge's nuclear legacy."

Over the next five years, ORNL will generate key insights from testing and assessments carried out at facilities including the Manufacturing Demonstration Facility, the Coated Particle Fuel Development Laboratory,ment Laboratory,