Fleet of small modular reactors to be built at Palisades

Last month, the owner of the Palisades nuclear plant signed an agreement to build two small modular nuclear reactors by 2030. If this is successful, these would be the first small modular reactors to be built in U.S. history.

The Palisades agreement is part of a larger agreement to build a 10-gigawatt fleet in North America through the 2030s. The owner, Holtec International, plans for two 300-megawatt SMRs by 2030, which would nearly double the amount of energy generated at the entire nuclear plant.

Palisades was shuttered in 2022 by a different proprietor, but Holtec is applying to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to bring the original 800MW Palisades reactor online in October 2025. This would also mark the first restart of a closed nuclear plant in U.S. history.

Several hurdles remain, chiefly that the company’s SMR design has not yet been licensed by the NRC. Only one SMR design has been licensed by the NRC, awarded to NuScale Power in January 2023. According to CNBC, restarting the main reactor may be challenging, as “inspections found more than 1,000 steam generator tubes with indications of corrosion cracking” and “the number of repairs needed are higher than what Holtec initially anticipated.” Holtec’s timeline for reopening the main plant has been described as “aggressive” and “demanding” by NRC staff. The Department of Energy has given Holtec a $1.5 billion loan and the state of Michigan awarded $300 million in grants.

SMRs hold a great deal of promise. They have distinct advantages in lower initial capital investment, greater scalability, and siting flexibility for locations unable to accommodate a traditional reactor. Smaller electrical markets, rural and isolated areas, microgrids, and industrial applications might find use for SMRs. Most importantly, the “modular” aspect of an SMR means that fabricating major components can be more cookie-cutter and substantially reduce construction times and costs.

Meanwhile in Minnesota, the 1994 moratorium on new nuclear construction remains in effect. The state’s two remaining nuclear plants — Monticello and Prairie Island — have been operating since the early 1970s and supply over 27 percent of the state’s electricity with zero emissions. A 2025 bill, H.F. 9, takes a run at repealing the moratorium so that Minnesota can build more reliable nuclear power.