NRC permits TVA to build first U.S. BWRX-300 SMR

The NRC on September 29, 2026 issued a construction permit for Clinch River Unit 1, a GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy BWRX-300, at TVA's site near Oak Ridge, Tennessee. TVA said it is the first U.S. utility permitted to build the 300-megawatt BWRX-300 and only the second U.S. advanced-reactor construction permit; no construction start date was announced and an operating license is still required. The Washington Examiner reported the NRC finished the review in 14 months, four months early, and that TVA is still negotiating cost sharing so ratepayers do not bear first-of-a-kind costs.