(Image: Oklo and Switch)
The Master Agreement establishes a framework for collaboration, with California-based liquid metal fast reactor developer Oklo expected to develop, construct and operate Aurora powerhouses to provide power to Switch across the USA through a series of individual binding power purchase agreements.
Since January 2016, all Switch data centres have been powered by 100% renewable energy, nearly 984 gigawatt-hours of power annually. The partners said this Master Agreement with Oklo supports Las Vegas-headquartered Switch's mission to "build efficient, sustainable infrastructure while bolstering the voluntary market for renewable and clean energy sources".
They added: "This Master Agreement highlights Oklo's business model of simplifying clean energy access by selling power, not power plants. It offers customers a direct, flexible pathway to clean, reliable, and affordable advanced nuclear energy."
Oklo's model is to build, own and operate its reactors - it will be selling power rather than power plants. The company, founded in 2013 and with OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman as chairman, says its deployment model can be tailored to individual needs and will help industries reduce reliance on existing grids.
The Aurora powerhouse is a fast neutron reactor that uses heat pipes to transport heat from the reactor core to a supercritical carbon dioxide power conversion system to generate electricity. It uses metallic fuel to produce up to 50 MWe as well as producing usable heat, and can operate on fuel made from fresh HALEU or used nuclear fuel. It says it aims to deploy its first commercial unit before the end of the decade.
"The relationship with Oklo underscores our commitment to deploying advanced nuclear power at a transformative scale for our data centres, further enhancing our offerings of one of the world's most advanced data centre infrastructures to current and future Switch clients," said Switch Founder and CEO Rob Roy. "By utilising Oklo's powerhouses, we aim to ensure that Switch remains the leader in data centre sustainability while supporting our vision of energy abundance."
"We are excited to collaborate with Switch on this historic agreement," said Jacob DeWitte, co-founder and CEO of Oklo. "Rob Roy and the Switch team share the vision we have for nuclear energy's role in powering artificial intelligence and providing the world with energy abundance. Oklo expects to benefit enormously from Switch's record of turning visions into reality.
"The lifespan of this Master Agreement will allow us to iterate and evolve with Switch, from development to deployment to scaling. We believe that working with Switch will not only accelerate our early powerhouses but also accelerate our ability to scale by demonstrating customer demand for decades to come."
There has been growing interest from operators of data centres in using nuclear energy, which they see as a way to meet their considerable projected energy requirements while also helping them to meet their climate commitments. The past few months have seen Microsoft, Google and Amazon all signing agreements to use nuclear energy in the years to come in the USA.
Last month, Oklo said it had a customer pipeline of 2100 MW for its Aurora powerhouse reactors, which it says will range from 15 MWe to 50 MWe and be scalable.
