Companies have started making applications for US$900 million (£692.6 million) of funding for mini nuclear power projects in the US.
Some US$800 million of this is set to be allocated to milestone-based awards for the likes of rector vendors and constructors, according to the US Energy Department.
The remaining US$100 million will be used to address gaps in the country’s existing nuclear industry, such as design, licensing, site and supply issues.
“Revitalising America’s nuclear sector is key to adding more carbon-free energy to the grid and meeting the needs of our growing economy,” energy secretary Jennifer Granholm said.
This includes power for the likes of artificial intelligence and data centres, as well as manufacturing and healthcare, she added.
Mini nuclear plants, or small modular reactors (SMRs), have long been proposed as cheaper and faster-to-build alternatives to conventional projects.
It comes after Alphabet Inc-owned Google and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) both signed deals for power from future SMR projects this week.
Google unveiled an agreement with start-up Kairos Power for SMR output to run its energy-hungry artificial AI data centres, before Amazon announced three SMR nuclear deals on Wednesday, which included contributing to a funding round in X-Energy Reactor Co.
No commercial SMRs have yet been built in the US, as is the case in the UK, where the government is also running a competition for public funding.
Last month, Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (LSE:RR.), Holtec Britain, GE Hitachi and Westinghouse Electric were announced as the final frontrunners for the funding in the UK, ahead of plans to develop SMRs over the coming decade.