Technology Competition: U.S. Think Tank: China, U.S., and Russia Compete to Develop Floating Nuclear Power Plants
Floating nuclear reactors are increasingly seen as a potential solution to enhance energy resilience for coastal or island microgrids and ensure power supply after natural disasters.
Remote coastal communities such as the western coast of Sumatra or the northeast corner of Sri Lanka face natural disasters year after year. Tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and heavy rains across Southeast Asia often lead to flooding, landslides, and infrastructure damage.
Energy security is a daily challenge for these villages, and due to the rugged terrain and dispersed populations common in archipelagic nations, central governments often struggle to reach these areas.
A promising future solution is the floating nuclear power plant (FNPP). This advanced form of nuclear energy can help mitigate climate change over the long term and offers a resilient energy source in the short term for communities continuously hit by power disruptions.
Many Indo-Pacific nations are racing to modernize their power systems to support industrial growth, advanced manufacturing, and climate adaptation. Floating nuclear reactors could drive this industrial strategy and provide electricity when land-based energy systems fail during disasters. These mobile offshore power stations can deliver reliable baseload power directly to coastal or island microgrids, representing a significant leap in resilience. Operating independently of vulnerable land-based infrastructure, such platforms can maintain operations at hospitals, desalination plants, ports, communication networks, and emergency response centers during and after disasters. The maritime design also makes them resistant to tsunamis. Over time, they can support economic development by enabling refrigeration, fisheries processing, advanced manufacturing, and port electrification.
Advancements in advanced nuclear reactors have made this application feasible. Compared to traditional reactors, advanced reactors offer significant advantages, including smaller size, lower infrastructure requirements, higher modularity, and enhanced passive safety.
Competition Among Maritime Powers
Strategic rivals have already begun leveraging floating nuclear energy as a tool of national power. Russia’s “Academician Lomonosov” floating nuclear power plant, using pressurized water reactor technology, has been operating in the Arctic region since 2020. Beyond supplying power to remote Russian regions, it sends a geopolitical signal: Moscow can deliver mobile energy and is actively seeking to export nuclear infrastructure to high-demand regions regardless of local governance standards.
China has drawn similar lessons. Beijing has openly explored the development of floating nuclear power plants. The nuclear energy concept has already been applied to areas including the South China Sea, and recently unveiled plans for a nuclear-powered vessel set to be launched in the early 2030s. Energy infrastructure is influential infrastructure.
U.S. companies like CORE POWER are designing next-generation floating nuclear power plants with technological designs and safety features surpassing those of competitors. These reactors are expected to feature passive safety, smaller footprints, and adaptability to both civilian and government missions.
U.S. scholars believe that if American technology is deployed effectively, it can set a global gold standard for floating nuclear power.
In the most vulnerable regions of the Indo-Pacific, energy resilience is key to political stability. Floating nuclear power presents a rare opportunity to achieve resilience, growth, and strategic influence on a single platform.
U.S. experts argue that floating nuclear power is neither a partisan issue nor a niche technology—it is a proven strategic asset. If the United States wants to maintain its soft power, economic influence, and geopolitical leadership in an era of intensifying competition, it must deploy its energy infrastructure and technological advantages in the most critical domains.
Source: The National Interest
Authors: Kristi Hiltybran and Sanjana Shahikuma
Date: March 31, Washington Time
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1861250921227264/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author(s).