Companies partner to target hyperscale and colocation operators in US
Small nuclear reactor developer Oklo and data center power and cooling firm Vertiv are partnering to use steam from the former’s nuclear plants to power the latter’s cooling tech.
The companies this week announced a collaboration agreement focused on the co-development of power and thermal management solutions tailored specifically for hyperscale and colocation data centers that will be deploying Oklo’s small modular reactors (SMRs).
The solutions will be powered by steam and electricity from Oklo’s advanced nuclear power plants. The companies claim that leveraging heat from Oklo’s on-site power plant to drive Vertiv’s cooling systems will “significantly enhance” data center energy efficiency.
The pilot technology demonstration is planned for the initial Oklo Aurora powerhouse deployment. The companies will work together to produce end-to-end reference designs for data centers that use Oklo’s on-site power plants.
“This agreement is about delivering clean power, energy-efficient cooling, and infrastructure solutions purpose-built for AI factories, data centers, and high-density compute,” said Jacob DeWitte, co-founder and CEO of Oklo. “We are developing a plant concept that leverages proven, off-the-shelf components without altering the core design of our plants. Vertiv is an expert in cooling and power innovation for data centers and critical infrastructure, so co-designing these solutions from the outset, we can create greater value and efficiency for data center and infrastructure operators.”
Vertiv CEO Gio Albertazzi added: “Our collaboration with Oklo is an extension of Vertiv’s commitment to energy-efficient infrastructure that supports modern data center demands. As the demand for AI and high-performance computing continues to grow, nuclear energy is increasingly a discussion point for hyperscale, colocation, and other large data centers. Vertiv is committed to driving innovation with the higher cooling capacities and energy efficiencies required to support modern data centers.”
Oklo is developing a 75MW modular reactor dubbed the Aurora Powerhouse. It aims to deliver its first reactor by 2027. As well as power, nuclear reactors create large amounts of heat and steam, which have previously been cited as potentially useful in district heating schemes.
Oklo has signed several agreements over the past year with several data center firms, with a customer pipeline exceeding 14GW of capacity.
Notable deals include a non-binding Master Power Agreement signed last December with US data center developer Switch to supply up to 12GW of power through 2044.
Last April, it inked a 500MW agreement with Equinix. In May, it signed a non-binding letter of intent outlining plans for a PPA with Prometheus Hyperscale to provide 100MW of power through one or more SMRs. Finally, it partnered with two undisclosed data center providers to deliver up to 750MW of power.
