AUSA Day 2: Army dreams big on microreactors

[nitpicked]

https://www.politico.com/newsletters/global-security/2025/10/14/ausa-day-2-army-dreams-big-on-microreactors-00606516

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The U.S. Army is launching a major push into nuclear power, in a bid to make military bases energy independent. At its annual meeting in Washington on Tuesday, it plans to announce the Janus program, an ambitious effort to develop and install factory-built reactors on American military bases by 2028.

Small but mighty: These compact fission power plants, known as “microreactors,” can run for years without refueling and fit on the back of a truck — though leading designs are still in the licensing, testing or early construction phases. The idea is to keep bases running even if the civilian grid goes down, while cutting reliance on diesel generators that guzzle fuel and depend on fragile supply chains.

“This is a very serious effort,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Army Secretary for Installations, Energy and Environment Jeff Waksman, who is leading the Army’s Janus program after running the Pentagon’s first prototype reactor project, known as Project Pele. “This is a funded effort. This is not intended to be a press-release project.”

The push comes as U.S. and allied firms — from defense giant BWXT to startups such as Oklo, Radiant and Kairos Power — race to commercialize small reactors for military and civilian use. Still, with no microreactor yet licensed or operational in the United States, and a lengthy regulatory process, the Army has a steep climb ahead.
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