Training Center Rises at Advanced Wyoming Nuclear Power Plant Site
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Technology firm TerraPower broke ground in August on a training center adjacent to its soon-to-be constructed advanced nuclear power reactor in Kemmerer, Wyo. The training facility will prepare future operators of the Kemmerer power plant and others it plans to build around the world.
While construction permitting moves forward on an advanced nuclear power reactor in Kemmerer, Wyo., where a coal fired power plant once existed, technology firm TerraPower is also building an on-site training facility to prepare future staff in developing and operating the facility and others it envisions globally.
Groundbreaking for the new 30,000-sq-ft facility took place in August with completion expected in about 14 months, said Sarah Young, TerraPower director of communications and marketing.
“The Kemmerer Training Center will serve as a cornerstone for workforce development in the advanced nuclear industry,” she said.
Located on the same site and adjacent to the future reactor facility, the center is designed by Chicago-based engineering firm Sargent & Lundy, and built by Bechtel. The latter also is prime contractor for TerraPower's estimated $4-billion next generation natrium power facility. North Carolina-based defense and mission critical manufacturer Curtiss-Wright Corp. has the contract to design and deliver the training simulator and control equipment for the Natrium reactor.
The center will house the training simulator, electrical and instrumentation laboratories for mechanical and scientific work, dedicated training classrooms, an auditorium and additional training spaces, said Young. It is designed to support accredited operator training and requalification for the Kemmerer Unit 1 and future Natrium plants as the fleet expands, set to become the central hub for training the next generation of TerraPower nuclear operators, she noted.
TerraPower and Bechtel broke ground on the Natrium plant last June and the current schedule calls for it to be completed sometime in 2030.
“Bechtel is proud to be delivering the next generation of U.S. nuclear power at TerraPower’s Natrium Project,” said President of its Nuclear, Security and Environmental business Dena Volovar, in a statement to ENR. “Drawing on more than 70 years of nuclear experience, we are training America’s craft professionals in nuclear safety and quality while applying the latest digital tools and mega-project expertise to make construction more predictable and efficient. With the Training Center and Test and Fill Facility already underway, we are moving nuclear innovation like the Natrium reactor into power generation faster and more reliably.”
The Natrium reactor portion of the project is continuing toward final approval by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Spokesperson Scott Burnell said in a statement that the commission “continues to engage on the Kemmerer Power Station Unit 1 review and ... continues to keep licensees and applicants apprised of impacts, where appropriate.”
A timeline on the commission website notes it has completed final legal review of the project's consolidated draft Environmental Impact Study ... in June and will be preparing a final study this month.
