An extended power outage at a military installation can quickly become a readiness problem.
That risk has led the Pentagon to examine whether small nuclear reactors can provide dependable electricity directly on bases. NANO Nuclear Energy is exploring that possibility through an Air Force feasibility study of its proposed KRONOS reactor at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington and, separately, is working with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign on a proposed research reactor now under federal review.
A microreactor is a nuclear reactor designed to be built largely in a factory and transported to its destination.
The designs vary, but they are far smaller than conventional reactors and generally produce enough power for a base, remote community, industrial operation or similar customer rather than an entire region.
Like a large reactor, a microreactor splits uranium atoms through fission and uses the resulting heat to produce electricity. Many designs rely on passive safety features that work without pumps or outside power.
Why Military Bases Need Independent Power
The military’s interest starts with a basic vulnerability: Most installations depend on the commercial grid and diesel generators.
Defense policy calls for critical loads to remain powered for at least 14 days during an unplanned outage, but storing and distributing enough diesel creates cost and logistics problems.
Fuel deliveries also may fail during a prolonged emergency. A reactor located on a base could continue producing electricity when the surrounding grid goes down.
James Walker, CEO of NANO Nuclear Energy, said his interest in the problem grew from work on British submarine reactors and other nuclear facilities.
“My background is a nuclear physicist and nuclear engineer,” Walker said in an interview with Military.com. “I got my start on submarine reactor systems.”
He worked for the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence and spent time at Rolls-Royce modeling a zero-power reactor.
NANO’s Air Force Contract is a Feasibility Study
NANO Nuclear is developing the KRONOS MMR, a small nuclear reactor. The company acquired KRONOS and other technology from Ultra Safe Nuclear Corp. for $8.5 million in January 2025.
KRONOS generates heat by splitting uranium atoms through nuclear fission. Helium carries that heat to molten salt, which stores the energy until it is needed to produce steam and electricity. Each reactor is designed to produce as much as 45 megawatts of heat and 15 megawatts of electricity.
Walker said customers could install several reactors together and share some supporting equipment, reducing the cost of producing power.
The Air Force awarded NANO Nuclear a $1.25 million research contract to determine whether KRONOS could meet the needs of Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington. The study will examine the base’s power requirements, weaknesses in the local electrical grid, possible reactor locations, environmental concerns and regulatory requirements.
Effectively, it’s an early-stage feasibility study.
The contract does not authorize NANO Nuclear to build a reactor, and the Air Force has not agreed to purchase one. The study will provide information the service could use when deciding whether to pursue the project further.
How KRONOS Would Fit on a Military Base
KRONOS is designed as a modular system, meaning its major components are manufactured away from the installation, transported by road and assembled at the site.
This approach requires less specialized construction on the base than a conventional nuclear plant. An installation that needs more power could add reactor modules rather than construct one much larger reactor.
“The reactor is as big as you can make a reactor before it stops being completely modular,” Walker said.
Walker said the reactor portion of each unit would sit underground, roughly four stories deep. A separate plant would convert the reactor’s heat into electricity or provide steam for other uses.
Placing the reactor below ground would also give the installation a different physical layout from the large nuclear plants most people recognize.
U.S. Air Force airmen and civilian contractors prepare a containerized nuclear power reactor for airlift aboard a C-17 Globemaster III at March Air Reserve Base, California, Feb. 13, 2026. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Monique Bright)
The surrounding earth and structure would add physical shielding, reduce the reactor’s exposure to external hazards and limit the amount of nuclear equipment above ground.
That smaller footprint is also central to a proposed KRONOS research reactor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The university plans to place the reactor on campus next to its existing Abbott Power Plant rather than at a remote nuclear complex.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is reviewing the construction permit application and will determine whether the design and location meet federal safety requirements. Construction has not yet been authorized.
What a Microreactor Could Power
A microreactor could connect to a base’s existing electrical system and supply power to its most important operations.
Depending on the installation, those systems could include command centers, communications networks, radar, missile defense, intelligence facilities, cybersecurity operations and weapons-support infrastructure. All require electricity that cannot disappear during an emergency or attack.
The reactor would not necessarily replace every source of electricity on the installation. It could operate as part of a base microgrid, which is a local electrical network that connects power sources with essential buildings and equipment.
If the commercial grid failed, the base could separate its micro-grid from the surrounding system and continue directing power to critical operations.
KRONOS is designed for this type of independent operation, commonly called “island mode.” Unlike diesel generators, an onsite reactor would not depend on repeated fuel deliveries during a prolonged outage.
“There is a drive to have that ability to be self-sufficient,” Walker said. “They are looking for that sovereign ability to be able to self-power.”
Why Reliable Power is a Military Requirement
Electricity supports nearly every part of a modern military installation, from communications and intelligence to security systems and weapons.
A lengthy outage could interrupt training, delay deployments or disable systems needed to protect the installation and support operations elsewhere.
Microreactors could provide steady power regardless of weather conditions or disruptions to the commercial grid. Their small, modular design would also allow the military to match the number of reactors to an installation’s power requirements instead of building a full-sized nuclear plant.
The Air Force study at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling will examine whether KRONOS could provide those benefits at that particular installation.
The study must consider the base’s energy demand, existing electrical infrastructure, available space and security requirements before the service decides whether to pursue the project further.
The Pentagon’s Broader Microreactor Push
NANO Nuclear’s Air Force study is one part of a wider military interest in small nuclear reactors.
In a separate initiative, the Army’s Janus program has entered agreements worth as much as $2.2 billion with five developers working on reactors for Army installations. Those projects are intended to provide dependable power for critical military missions when the commercial grid is unavailable.
The military’s interest in microreactors comes down to whether they can keep critical operations powered during a grid failure or disruption to fuel deliveries.
The Air Force’s work with NANO Nuclear is intended to determine whether KRONOS could become part of that solution.
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