U.S. microreactor developer Last Energy has formed a partnership with the NATO Energy Security Centre of Excellence (ENSEC COE). The purpose of the new partnership is to jointly research military applications for micro-nuclear power technologies and explore opportunities for future deployment on NATO military installations.
     The partnership agreement was signed by Bret Kugelmass, the Last Energy CEO, and Colonel Darius Uzkuraitis, the ENSEC COE Director. It is the first ever agreement between ENSEC COE and a nuclear energy company.
     A Last Energy spokesperson said that under the partnership agreement the company will produce joint research with ENSEC COE focusing on microreactor applications for NATO military bases and installations. He added that the scope of research is currently being refined. Last Energy will also provide industry advice to ENSEC COE for the remainder of its nuclear work more broadly. In addition, Last Energy will identify and engage in other joint projects, including exploring opportunities to actually deploy microreactors on NATO bases.
     Kugelmass said that “Nuclear energy is unequivocally the most reliable, abundant form of power mankind has ever discovered, and it must become the default solution for NATO militaries as they navigate a new era of great power competition. No other resource is capable of providing the kind of 24/7 energy security that’s mission critical on military bases, but we will only realize that potential if we miniaturize, modularize, and productize nuclear development.”
     Kugelmass added, “We’re honored to partner with the NATO Energy Security Centre of Excellence and look forward to creating a roadmap for the adoption of micro-scale nuclear power across NATO installations.”
     Last Energy is a spin-off of the Energy Impact Center. It is a research institute devoted to accelerating the clean energy transition through innovation. Its SMR technology is the PWR-20 which is based on a pressurized water reactor with a capacity of twenty megawatts of electricity or sixty megawatts of heat. Power plant modules will be constructed off-site and assembled in modules on-site. Based on the use of ready-made modular components, a reactor is expected to be assembled within twenty-four months of the final investment decision. The assumed lifetime of one of the Last Energy power plants is forty-two years.
     ENSCE COE is located in Vilnius, Lithuania. It is one of twenty-eight NATO-accredited expert bodies that advise member militaries on strategy and technologies in particular fields. Founded in 2012, the ENSCE works with partners in industry, academia and government to research and develop solutions for NATO militaries to ensure energy resilience and efficiency as well as critical energy infrastructure safety.
    Under the terms of the partnership, Last Energy and ENSEC COE agree to work on joint projects around nuclear energy applications for NATO military installations and operations.
     Last Energy said, “The center’s partnership with Last Energy is part of a broader pivot by NATO toward prioritizing energy security. In addition to dramatically reducing the cost and timeline of construction, micro-nuclear plants have minimal water requirements and can be sited nearly anywhere, allowing for a direct power connection and, by extension, enabling the offtaker to circumvent the traditional bandwidth restraints and price volatility of the grid.”