U.S. military flew a small nuclear reactor to Utah. Here’s what it means for the Beehive State.

Note to readers • This story is made possible through a partnership between The Salt Lake Tribune and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization.

State and federal leaders called it a momentous day for Utah’s energy future.

California startup Valar Atomics on Sunday transported a small nuclear test reactor aboard three Air Force C-17 jets from March Air Reserve near Los Angeles to Hill Air Force Base near Layton. From there, the reactor was placed on trucks for transport to the Utah San Rafael Energy Lab in Emery County. Officials said they expect the reactor to be switched on by July 4.

“The history books will actually write about this day,” said Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, shortly after the reactor landed. “It’s projects like this that will ensure we will never be dependent on an adversary or foreign entity for power.”

The reactor won’t produce power for Utah residents. Instead, it will undergo more testing and be used to train a future nuclear workforce at the San Rafael lab. But the U.S. Department of Defense said in a news release the flight demonstrates the country can produce nuclear infrastructure that’s easy to transport and deploy, using a “commercial-first” strategy.

“Energy is not just an economic issue ... it is a national security issue as well,” said Gov. Spencer Cox, reiterating a talking point that’s become common among state and federal officials touting nuclear. “America cannot project strength abroad if we lack reliable, deployable power at home.”

The governor also emphasized Utah’s willingness to lead the nation’s efforts to beef up energy production. The partnership with Valar, Cox noted, aligns with his Operation Gigawatt initiative to double the state’s energy production in the next decade.

The state’s largest utilities are already struggling to keep up with new power demands, largely driven by artificial intelligence and huge data centers.

“We are laying the legal, regulatory, workforce and infrastructure groundwork right now,” Cox said.

Valar calls its reactor the “Ward250” core. “Ward,” after CEO Isaiah Taylor’s grandfather, Ward Schaap, who worked on the Manhattan Project and produced the nation’s first nuclear weapons. The “250″ represents the 250th anniversary of U.S. Independence as well as the 250 kilowatts of peaking power it will produce when it first fires up.

“We love Utah,” Taylor said in an interview.

After exploring 22 states to pilot the Ward 250 project, Taylor said he selected the Beehive State because of its business-friendly regulations and Emery County’s eagerness to remain an energy hub, even as its coal industry continues to decline.

Valar’s reactor and associated equipment did not include any radioactive material as it was transported through the sky. The company will obtain fuels from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Los Alamos National Laboratory as it conducts tests at the San Rafael lab.

Spent fuels will be stored on site, Taylor confirmed.

Dignitaries that traveled aboard the military aircraft transporting the reactor lauded President Donald Trump and his push to usher in a nuclear renaissance in the U.S.

“President Trump promised the American people that he would unleash American energy dominance,” Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright told a crowd of Valar employees, military workers and media. “He is delivering big time.”

The Biden administration also pushed a nuclear development surge through an initiative to significantly reduce reliance on fossil fuels by 2035. Trump gutted incentives to build more wind and solar as part of that program shortly after beginning his second term last year.

Trump’s “regulatory regime,” Wright asserted, is focused on three things when it comes to nuclear: “Safety, safety and safety,” Wright said. “It’s replacing one that was focused on bureaucracy, safety and bureaucracy.”

Safety is one of the key factors giving Utahns pause when it comes to fission reactors. Southern parts of the state and other communities in the West were subject to fallout from the nuclear weapons testing that ultimately ended World War II. Those downwinders suffered debilitating health and economic impacts inflicted by their own government.

Local residents have also raised concerns about what more energy development will mean for Utah’s already sapped water supplies. Valar’s reactor, however, will have “zero” water demands, Taylor said.

The company will use TRISO fuels as well, Taylor noted, which the Department of Energy asserts cannot melt in high-temperature commercial reactors.

Valar has raised more than $150 million in funding, CNBC reported, and the company plans to build hundreds of reactors to power data centers and new manufacturing in the nation.

The test reactor will be the first advanced reactor deployed in Utah, Emy Lesofski, director of the Office of Energy Development, confirmed. The state and Valar announced their partnership to support construction of a test reactor in May.

“This represents possibilities for the future,” Lesofski said.

The U.S. military is the only American entity so far to use small modular reactors, which makes the Department of Defense a useful partner as states and the private sector work to deploy the technology for civilian use, Lesofski added.

“They can help with disaster recovery,” Lesofski said. “They can help with humanitarian missions.”

Small modular reactors could also help rural Utah communities that can’t tap into a reliable grid, she said.

“A lot of people talk about Ticaboo,” Lesofski said, referring to the small town that serves as a tourist hub for Lake Powell. The community largely depends on diesel generators to power its hotel, homes and businesses.

“You could replace a diesel generator with a small reactor that would then provide power that’s baseload, sustainable energy,” Lesofski said. “And it’s clean and safe.”