INTERVIEW COREPOWER

CorePower is just one company that has been working to provide alternative sources of power for vessels — in this case, its Molten Salt Reactor programme, which will deliver advanced atomic energy batteries for large commercial ships. Ian Cochran talks to chief executive Mikal Boe

Mikal Boe Chief Executive, CorePower

A NEW LOOK AT NUCLEAR POWER

Q: Please explain what a molten salt reactor is. A: A molten salt reactor (MSR) is a class of nuclear fission reactor in which the primary nuclear reactor coolant and/or the fuel is a molten salt mixture. A key characteristic of MSRs is their operation at or close to atmospheric pressure, hence inherent safety is built in.

Marine Molten Salt Reactors (m-MSR) technology will provide the power for the largest ships afloat through the installation of advanced atomic batteries, currently in development with the first prototype scheduled for 2024.

Q: I see it can be used to manufacture green ammonia. Should this fuel be chosen, would CorePower manufacture green ammonia ashore and then can it be shipped to bunker points? A: With m-MSR power, floating production vessels (think FPSOs) could be positioned where fuel is needed. Making green fuels from air (Nitrogen) and water (Hydrogen) to create green ammonia (NH3) can be done in ports, substantially reducing the need for a trillion-dollar supply chain to be built around green fuels.

Such floating production units could produce to meet demand, and switch to production of fuels for urban transport and infrastructure when demand for green marine fuel is lower. Production vessels could — and should — be owned by professionally run private companies.

Q: Which particular areas of the shipping industry is CorePower currently aiming to equip? A: Currently, there are about 40,000 ships that are too small to make commercial sense of installing an m-MSR battery onboard. Instead, they can use green fuels for their existing propulsion systems.

We are aligned with the shipping industry’s drive towards producing green synthetic fuels to replace fossil fuels. So, from Core Power’s perspective that is a market where we can provide long-term,

scalable, emission free energy to produce green fuels and meet that demand. The development of on-board m-MSRs will make perfect sense for the largest vessels afloat.

Our plans, moving ahead, are in parallel with the development of the technology for use in the production of green fuels.

Q: Most pundits think that the internal combustion engine (ICE) is here to stay. Will this technology lead to engine conversions to run off the nuclear battery pack system? A: Diesel engines are cheap, but maintenance and fuel over the lifetime of the ship is expensive. With very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO), the total propulsion costs, including capex and opex, of a Triple-E container ship can be more than $950m over a 20-year period sailing at full service-speed.

Fuelled for life, m-MSRs are more expensive up front, but operating costs over the lifetime of the ship are very low. A Triple-E containership could be up to 30% cheaper to run on full service-speed with an m-MSR “battery pack” over a 20year period, compared with one burning VLSFO, and potentially more than 70% cheaper than the same ship burning green NH3.

The m-MSR will produce the heat needed to generate power for an electric motor using a steam turbine, hence no emissions.

Q: Will the battery packs do away the need for auxiliaries? A: We envisage there will be a need have an auxiliary power system for maintenance periods, safety checks and port state control inspections.

Q: A system like this will obviously favour newbuildings due to the design work needed. Will there be much of a retrofit market? A: We are working with some of the major shipyards in Japan to develop a building programme to incorporate m-MSR technology into ships with new design concepts.

So, yes, it is unlikely there will be initial demand for retrofitting, although as the m-MSR batteries are mass produced and the unit price drops there may be opportunities for retrofitting in the future. Q: How have you tackled the issue of onboard storage? A: The advanced atomic battery packs are relatively small and, with no smokestacks or exhaust systems, the engine room size can be reduced and the additional space used for more cargo. Engineering crews can also be reduced as only turbines and electric systems need regular maintenance.

Q: Like any new innovation, mass production is key. Is CorePower looking for a partner with mass production facilities as yet? A: Once the prototype m-MSR battery is ready, as early as 2024, we will look to establish a production facility in the US in the following years. In the future, there will opportunities to build the MSRs in countries such as Japan or the UK.

However initially, as the batteries are relatively small, they can be easily transported to shipyards or green fuel production platforms by sea.

Q: De-commissioning of nuclear power plants is seen as a problem. How will you tackle this? A: The main difference is that m-MSR spent fuel can be recycled into terrestrial power production and used for up to 150 years per load, leaving a small amount of waste.

Once the ship has been taken out of service, the battery can be removed and, following refurbishment, can be reinstalled in the next vessel.

Unlike old nuclear vessels, which required atomic material to be replaced every 12-24 months because only 1% of the fuel was used and the rest is waste, MSR batteries have a life span of 25 years without refuelling and use somewhere between 95% and 97% of the fuel, leaving minimal waste for reprocessing. Some of the that waste can be harvested for rare isotopes used in the treatment of cancer.

Q: Obviously CorePower will need finance to go into any sort of production. Are you addressing this? A: CorePower is in a consortium with TerraPower, founded by Bill Gates, Southern Company, a leading USenergy provider, and Orano, the French state-owned atomic energy provider. The consortium was granted US Department of Energy funding in 2020.

CorePower also has more than 50 shipowners involved in the company, both as private investors and advisors.

Q: What about political or other obstacles to this type of power? How will this be addressed? A: For sure, public opinion is one of our main strategic areas to help the general public, governments, NGOs and the shipping industry understand that this MSR technology is totally different from the old nuclear. The perceived issues with nuclear bear no resemblance to the actual figures. m-MSR is not connected to the “old nuclear”, like the technology that is used in power stations, on naval submarines, aircraft carriers and ice breakers, but new advanced “atomic battery” technology in the form of the m-MSR. It can provide all the positive benefits of atomic energy, without the negative problems of old nuclear.

In the m-MSR atomic battery, the fuel is the coolant and the coolant is the fuel, so coolant cannot be lost. What happened at Chernobyl or Fukushima is unthinkable with an m-MSR.

An MSR is a class of nuclear fission reactor in which the primary nuclear reactor coolant and/or the fuel is a molten salt mixture. A key characteristic of MSRs is their operation at or close to atmospheric pressure, rather than the 75-150 times atmospheric pressure of typical lightwater reactors (LWR), hence reducing the large, expensive containment structures used for LWRs and eliminating a source of explosion risk.

Reverse Cold Ironing - Powering ports with MSR powered ships

One of the potential benefits of MSR-powered vessels is that when at berth, the atomic battery can be connected to the local grid and power the port or terminal for the duration of its stay. The cost of power used will be priced to be significantly cheaper than the land side electricity provider.

The port or terminal operator can then pay the power used or discount the amount from the berthing charges.