The Wilmington site (Image: GE Vernova)

Big news from GE Vernova. They’re planning to pump over $50 million into GE Hitachi’s Wilmington, North Carolina site. And that’s just part of a much larger investment – a whopping $600 million across their US factories and facilities over the next two years!

So, what’s all this money going towards at the Wilmington site? Well, they’re looking to boost safety, quality, and productivity, and get ready to roll out their next-gen nuclear fuel design for the BWRX-300 small modular reactor. GE Vernova is betting big on this reactor, saying this investment makes it “the most ready to deploy advanced reactor on the market.”

The cash injection will also help automate things at the plant. This plant already makes fuel for a bunch of boiling water reactors in the US, and this upgrade will put them in a great position as demand for nuclear energy rises around the world, especially with some US utilities bringing retired plants back online.

GE Vernova expects this investment to create over 1500 new jobs! They also believe it will help make energy more affordable in the US, boost national security, and make the country more competitive. This is the biggest investment GE Vernova has made since they spun off from GE last April. 

GE Hitachi’s Wilmington operations are where they make zircalloy components, uranium dioxide powder and pellets, and fuel assemblies for the boiling water reactor market.