Wyoming’s Next Energy Boom Begins

aerial view of large industrial building under construction at sunset — Photo: Roschetzky Photography / Shutterstock

Kemmerer’s coal era is giving way to a nuclear build that could reshape the town’s economy for years to come.

Quick Take

TerraPower is building its first Natrium reactor near a retiring coal facility in Kemmerer, Wyoming.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved the construction permit, clearing a major step for the project.
The plant is meant to pair reliable power with a local economic shift after coal retirements.
Supporters say the project could bring construction jobs first and long-term work later.

Construction Starts on a First-of-Its-Kind Reactor

TerraPower says it has started construction on Kemmerer Unit 1, its flagship Natrium plant, near the site of a retiring coal facility in Kemmerer, Wyoming. The company calls it America’s first utility-scale advanced nuclear power plant, and the project is tied to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Project. That gives the plant real weight in a town built around fossil fuel work.

The site is designed around a 345-megawatt sodium-cooled fast reactor paired with energy storage that can raise output to 500 megawatts. TerraPower says the plant is meant to supply dispatchable carbon-free power, which means electricity that can be sent when needed instead of only when the wind blows or the sun shines. That matters in a state where energy reliability still drives politics and local paychecks.

A Coal Town Looking for Its Next Payroll

Kemmerer’s appeal is not just technical. TerraPower and local reporting have framed the project as a way to use the town’s existing energy workforce and infrastructure after coal retirements. Marketplace reported in 2024 that supporters hoped the nuclear plant would absorb workers from the nearby coal plant and bring 250 long-term jobs and 1,600 temporary construction jobs. Those numbers have become central to the town’s hopes.

The broader idea is simple: keep energy jobs in the same place, even as the fuel changes. That is why coal communities across the country are watching Kemmerer closely. Wyoming has long relied on coal, but the state also has room, transmission links, and a workforce familiar with power generation. For residents, the project offers a possible bridge between an old economy and a new one.

Regulators Have Moved the Project Forward

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued the construction permit for TerraPower’s Kemmerer Power Station Unit 1 in March 2026. The agency said this was its first commercial reactor construction approval in nearly a decade, and the first for a commercial non-light-water reactor in more than 40 years. That does not mean the plant will soon produce power, but it does show the project has cleared a major federal gate.

BIPARTISAN PROGRESS IN WYOMING
AMERICA BUILDS A REACTOR AGAIN
On March 4, 2026, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved the first construction permit for a commercial nuclear reactor in nearly a decade, and the first ever for this new class of advanced reactor.
The Natrium… pic.twitter.com/SI2YMNN2hd

— 𝕀𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕡𝕖𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝕋𝕚𝕞𝕖𝕤 ℕ𝕖𝕨𝕤 (@IndTimesNews) August 9, 2026

Even with the permit in hand, the hard part still lies ahead. The project must move through more construction, later licensing steps, and the long work of proving that a first-of-a-kind reactor can run as promised. That gap between announced plans and real-world performance is where many large energy projects stumble, especially when they carry big promises about jobs, tax base, and local revival.

Why Kemmerer Matters Beyond Wyoming

Kemmerer has become a test case for a larger national debate over reliable power. Supporters see advanced nuclear as a way to add firm electricity without carbon emissions, while critics of energy policy on both the left and right say Washington too often sells grand plans before the results are real. The Natrium project sits right in that fault line. If it works, it could offer a model for other coal towns. If it does not, the cost will land on a community already trying to adjust.