BWXT Holds A Realistic Path To Expanding Nuclear Capacity

Ananym Capital is urging BWXT to commercialize its reactor production capabilities. The investor is looking for BWXT to bring back one of their old small modular reactor (SMR) design, mPower, that was abandoned in 2017. 

BWXT already produces one to three reactors each year for U.S. aircraft carriers and submarines. That steady cadence gives it unmatched experience turning complex nuclear hardware into delivered hardware on a predictable basis. 

With only a handful of AP1000 units built worldwide, no other American players can claim comparable low technology risk when it comes to actual reactor production. 

This stands in contrast to the wave of microreactor developers pitching novel concepts. Many remain years from full-scale deployment, still navigating licensing for core designs and advanced materials with minimum operating history. 

BWXT does not need to invent a new reactor architecture to matter. It can adapt existing pressurized water technology it has built and serviced for decades, then apply it where demand is clearest: data centers and industrial users seeking reliable, always-on power.

Ananym is pushing the revival of an old SMR design BWXT was working on with Bechtel in the early 2000s. The project was closed down after the program struggled to bring off-takers on board. 

While the idea makes sense with BWXT being one of the more experienced reactor developers in the world, it would be a far less complicated effort to simply do more of what they’re already good at. 

Instead of having to design a new reactor that has not seen operations yet, the company could instead increase the production rate of their naval reactor line for use in other government applications or in the commercial industry. 

The concept is not without its headaches, as we discussed previously with a similar idea from HGP Intelligent Energy. The reactors will likely require some amount of redesign to work at lower uranium enrichment levels. 

Whether BWXT decides to revive the shelved SMR project or simply do more of what they already are good at, the general idea just makes too much sense: stop trying to reinvent the [nuclear] wheel.