The U.S. Army is moving forward with plans to bring nuclear power to five military installations, part of a multibillion-dollar effort to strengthen the military's energy security and reduce its reliance on potentially vulnerable power grids.

The Army announced Wednesday that its Janus Program has selected five nuclear energy companies for awards of up to a combined $2.2 billion to own, build and operate nuclear microreactors at bases in North Carolina, Kentucky, Texas, Georgia and New York. Microreactors are the smallest class of nuclear plants, generally producing under about 20 megawatts of electricity — versus roughly 1,000 megawatts or more from a large commercial reactor — and are designed to be largely factory-built, delivered by truck, rail or air, and run with minimal staffing, with some designs targeting years of operation between refuelings.

The announcement comes as the Army works toward a September 2028 target outlined in an executive order signed by President Donald Trump calling for the first Army-regulated reactor to begin operating on a military installation. That order was one of several nuclear directives signed in May 2025 that also set a goal of quadrupling U.S. nuclear power capacity to 400 gigawatts by 2050, up from roughly 100 gigawatts today. Combined with expected private-sector investment, the Army said it expects more than 20 nuclear microreactors to eventually be built and operated across Department of War installations, the name the Pentagon has carried since a 2025 executive order. Unlike commercial reactors licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Janus units will be regulated by the Army itself.

The initial reactors will be built by Antares Nuclear at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; BWXT Advanced Technologies at Fort Campbell, Kentucky; and General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems at Fort Hood, Texas. The Army said Radiant Industries will additionally install a reactor at Fort Benning, Georgia, while Westinghouse Government Services will install one at Fort Drum, New York. The selected vendors span the industry's range: BWXT has for decades built the reactors powering U.S. Navy submarines and aircraft carriers; Westinghouse's designs underpin a large share of today's commercial reactor fleet and the company is developing the eVinci microreactor; Radiant was founded by former SpaceX engineers and is developing its transportable Kaleidos microreactor; General Atomics, parent of the electromagnetic systems unit, is a San Diego defense contractor with nuclear research roots dating to the 1950s; and Antares Nuclear is a microreactor startup.

Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll emphasized the importance of securing reliable power for military installations.

"Since launching the Janus Program, our mandate from President Trump and Secretary Hegseth has been clear: secure the power our warfighters need to train, deploy, and win," Driscoll said. "Awarding these contracts accelerates our ability to deliver safe, reliable baseload power directly to our installations. We are building the energy resilience necessary to project combat power globally, without relying on potentially vulnerable external grids."

According to the Army, the funding will be distributed from fiscal years 2027 through 2031 under a milestone-based payment model, meaning companies will receive government funding only after meeting specified technical goals. Each vendor is also expected to contribute significant private capital.

The Army said it spent roughly a year evaluating potential installations, assessing factors including energy needs, seismic and hydrological considerations, and safety.

Jeff Waksman, principal deputy assistant secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and Environment, stressed that the effort is not simply an experiment, but is intended to produce reactors capable of reliably providing power for years.

"We are seeking not just reactors capable of turning on for a brief demonstration, but rather systems able to deliver power with high-capacity factors for years of operation," Waksman said. "The Janus Program will be a complete success when and only when we have assisted multiple nuclear companies in developing truly reliable and affordable nuclear microreactors which they can sell to other buyers beyond just the military."

The military push parallels a broader commercial turn toward nuclear power: technology companies have signed agreements to back new reactor projects and to restart retired plants, including a unit at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania, as electricity demand climbs, driven in part by data centers.

The Army said the five initial locations are only the beginning, with additional Army and other military service sites expected to be announced later.

"We need more power. We need it delivered faster and cheaper, and we need it to be more reliable," Owen West, director of the Department of War Innovation Unit, said. "With Janus, DIU is assisting the Army's micro reactor build — speeding military energy production to protect the nation."

Source: Fox Business