Gov. Little touts ISU reactor project as next step in state’s nuclear legacy

POCATELLO, Idaho (CBS2) — Idaho State University’s plan to build a functional microreactor took a step forward Wednesday as state and energy leaders gathered at the future reactor site to recognize what organizers called the first project of its kind in the nation.

Gov. Brad Little told the crowd the Advanced Research and Test Reactor project will build on Idaho’s nuclear legacy and help prepare workers for what he described as a growing industry.

“Idaho is not a great place to sell energy. It’s a great place to build it,” Little said. “And this is an example right here, of exactly that. We’re going to build the energy, we’re going to build the technology, we’re going to build the components, and, more importantly, we’re going to build the great minds and the skill set to deploy all across this country as the nuclear renaissance goes forward.”

In April, the U.S. Department of Energy selected Idaho State University for the department’s Nuclear Reactor Innovation Center Launch Pad USA program. In partnership with Idaho Falls-based NuCube Energy Inc., the university plans to design and commission the Advanced Research and Test Reactor at ISU’s Business and Research Park.

The project is expected to serve as a hub for student learning, applied research, and reactor operations. ISU offers the only nuclear engineering undergraduate program in Idaho and has been meeting workforce needs for more than 60 years through its current reactor, Idaho National Laboratory Deputy Director Todd Combs said.

Idaho State University has operated a research reactor on campus since 1965 and is one of only 24 universities in the United States with a nuclear reactor. That connection played a key role in ISU’s selection for the new reactor partnership.

“You have a rich history here at Idaho State,” Combs said. “Generations of students have earned their license on that reactor, and hundreds of students will earn their operator license on the new reactor. The laboratory has a lot of workforce needs.”

NuCube CEO Cristian Rabiti said the partnership with ISU was a natural fit. NuCube is an advanced nuclear technology company based in Idaho Falls that develops factory-built microreactors designed to provide carbon-free electricity and high-temperature industrial heat.

“We are an innovation company. We are a research company. It’s natural to think about a University partnership,” Rabiti said. “We are a company that is focusing on changing the ways we build reactors. This is not only building a reactor. This is building an innovation partnership.”

NuCube already employs ISU students, including Sam Jeffries, an ISU graduate student and full-time engineer who serves as the lab manager and test engineer at NuCube. Jeffries said he spent more than a decade in engineering before coming to ISU to further his education.

“While balancing a full load of graduate classes with a full-time engineering position can definitely be demanding, it allows me to immediately apply what I’m learning at ISU to the work I do at NuCube every day,” Jeffries said.

ISU President Robert Wagner said the project reflects the university’s Contract for Idaho priorities, including powering Idaho’s energy future, training the state’s workforce, leveraging partnerships and strengthening the economy.

“For ISU, this partnership is more than a demonstration of our commitment to education,” Wagner said. “As we celebrate our 125th anniversary, we can look back and see the broad impact this institution has had on our communities and the State of Idaho.”

Other speakers at Wednesday’s event included Launchpad USA Technical Program Manager Jake Rymer and Shoshone-Bannock Tribal Business Council Member Russell Haskett.