HGP Intelligent Energy LLC, a U.S. energy infrastructure developer, is reportedly pursuing a SPAC deal that would value the company at approximately $1.2 billion. This move aims to finance their ambitious plans to provide power for advanced computing and critical infrastructure, particularly focusing on the rapidly growing demand from AI data centers.
The company's flagship proposal, the "CoreHeld Project," involves deploying two decommissioned naval pressurized water reactors near Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee. These reactors, previously used in U.S. aircraft carriers and submarines, would generate between 450 and 520 megawatts of baseload power, specifically tailored to support intensive AI workloads requiring constant and predictable electricity. HGP estimates the project cost to be between $1.8 billion and $2.1 billion, a figure significantly lower than building new nuclear plants or small modular reactors.
HGP is also a commercial partner in Prometheus, a $230 million program led by Idaho National Laboratory to accelerate nuclear energy deployment using AI. As part of this, HGP contributes NTH-Sim, an AI-powered digital twin for real-time core monitoring, and variable-frequency-drive reactor coolant pumps. These technologies are designed to make dedicated on-site nuclear generation commercially practical for data centers, allowing reactors to follow minute-to-minute load demands without relying on the public grid.
The increasing demand for power from hyperscale data centers, driven by AI workloads, is prompting cloud providers and infrastructure operators to explore nuclear energy as a carbon-free, always-on power source. HGP Intelligent Energy's strategy of repurposing existing naval reactors and developing AI-driven operational efficiencies positions them to address this growing energy need, with CEO Gregory Forero emphasizing the company's confidence in safely scaling these solutions.
