GE Vernova is quietly building a small modular reactor business alongside its dominant gas and wind operations, positioning it as a lower-risk alternative to pure-play nuclear names Oklo and NuScale. The company's Ontario SMR project is on track to become the first grid-scale small modular reactor in the Western world, while a new Texas gas-plus-nuclear plant advances toward a 2027 investment decision.
GE Vernova's nuclear project moves ahead in Ontario
GE Vernova is building a small modular reactor in Ontario using its BWRX-300 design through GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy, and the project is already under construction, with completion expected by the end of the decade. Once finished, it would become the first grid-scale SMR in the Western world, putting the company ahead of both Oklo and NuScale. CEO Scott Strazik said the company "secured two more tech selects in early work agreements for our SMR in the U.S.", according to the company's second-quarter earnings call.
The company also just advanced a second nuclear effort. In mid-August, GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy and Blue Energy signed an agreement to advance a 2.5-gigawatt gas-plus-nuclear power plant in Texas, subject to a final investment decision that could come in 2027. The plant would initially power a 1-gigawatt data center using two GE Vernova gas turbines, then add 1.5 gigawatts of nuclear capacity from up to five GVH small modular reactors starting in 2032.
A gas and wind business funding the nuclear bet
Nuclear is not GE Vernova's core business today. Its power service orders rose 12% in the second quarter, driven by nuclear and gas power. Its gas power equipment backlog also grew from 100 gigawatts to 116 gigawatts in the quarter, on track to reach 125 gigawatts by year-end. Its wind unit is struggling, however, with orders down 40% and revenue down 10% in the second quarter, even as the company retains the largest installed base of onshore wind turbines in the U.S.
That legacy business is generating the cash funding the nuclear investments. GE Vernova's revenue grew 22% in the second quarter to $11.1 billion, producing $5.5 billion in cash from operations. The company built its cash balance to $13.1 billion while returning $3.9 billion to shareholders through dividends and buybacks this year.
Oklo and NuScale still lack revenue
Oklo and NuScale, the pure-play SMR companies drawing most investor attention, remain pre-revenue by comparison. Oklo generated $1.2 million in revenue during the second quarter against a net loss of $48.4 million, though it holds about $2.5 billion in cash and investments. NuScale generated $75,000 in revenue in the second quarter, down from $8 million a year earlier, and posted a $47.5 million net loss, with a $1.9 billion liquidity buffer.
Source: Motley Fool via Yahoo Finance
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