Long Beach to add fleet of floating miniature nuclear power plants

A nuclear power plant could soon start floating off the coast of Southern California.

The Port of Long Beach, along with a partner, is attempting to develop movable nuclear plants on barges that can be used to power the port and eventually the entire city.

Long Beach announced a partnership in July with Bluecore Energy, a startup that is seeking to “democratize access to clean energy.”

“Nuclear energy at sea is not a new idea. Our opportunity is to take lessons from decades of maritime nuclear experience and combine them with modern engineering to build systems for a new generation of commercial applications,” said the founder and CEO of Bluecore Energy, Kofi Asante.

Asante also told the Los Angeles Times that his startup is working to create small modular reactors (SMRs) that produce a new form of nuclear power.

Bluecore Energy has already raised $10 million in funding and started operations at a 10,000-square-foot warehouse space at the port called Berth 48.

This comes as the Port of Long Beach is pursuing to double container volume by 2050, after becoming the first port in the nation to sign a Memorandum of Cooperation with the US Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) last month.

Under this partnership, the pair will work to advance development of SMRs to power ports and to build nuclear-powered vessels. They will also collaborate with federal agencies to “help define the operational protocols, safety standards and inspection processes needed to support the safe arrival and servicing of SMR-powered vessels at US ports.”

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