Ma reported in mid-December 2024 that Chevron CEO Mike Wirth sees promise in small modular nuclear reactors, which have become popular in the tech sector recently, and signaled openness to getting involved more directly. Speaking at the Atlantic Council on Dec. 6, the head of the second biggest U.S. energy giant by market cap noted that Chevron has previously invested in companies developing small modular fission reactors and startups working on fusion.
Aaron M. Sprecher—Bloomberg via Getty Images
"It's all to understand where that technology is moving and think about applications," Wirth explained, adding that Chevron also has experience working in highly regulated environments, just like the nuclear industry does.
He noted that Chevron also operates gas-fired power plants to support its businesses in some far-flung places without easy access to the energy grid.
"A way to decarbonize that would be with small modular nuclear in some of these remote locations," Wirth said. "And so I'm a fan of the technology. I want to see it be successful. I think the world needs it, and there could be a role for a company like ours."
That comes as Google, Amazon and Microsoft have signed nuclear-energy deals in recent months to fuel their AI technology, which requires vast amounts of electricity. Such investments are part of a growing acknowledgment that other sources of carbon-free energy may not be available at the speed and scale to accommodate the tech sector's relentless AI race.
In his talk at the Atlantic Council, Wirth also nodded to those realities, signaling a broader view of energy options in the future.
"Are we serious about climate, or are we just trying to say no to things?" he said, recalling a conversation he had with someone who was passionate about climate change but opposed to nuclear energy. "So we need to rule solutions in—not out—because we need more solutions and we need more innovation."
Meanwhile, Wirth's counterpart at Exxon Mobil, another Fortune 500 company, cautioned Wall Street analysts on the timeline for nuclear power, as the type of small modular reactors that Silicon Valley is investing in may not be ready for commercial operations until the next decade, [more likely by 2030 or sooner].
"If you’re betting on nuclear and something coming down the road, there’s a long road ahead of us," Darren Woods said on Wednesday at the Reuters NEXT conference, according to CNBC.
That's after Exxon announced plans this week to help install power generation for AI data centers. After an early ramp-up stage, the company will store emissions and supply natural gas to the power plants, Woods explained, adding that Exxon doesn't plan to launch a separate power generation business.
For its part, Chevron is also looking to power data centers.
“This is something that our company is very well positioned to participate in,” Jeff Gustavson, president of Chevron's new energy business, said at the conference.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
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