Valar Atomics, a nuclear energy startup, has submitted a proposal to federal regulators to construct a data center powered by 456 small nuclear reactors on approximately 9,500 acres of federal land near Price, Utah. The project, referred to by the company as "Project Beehive," would also include a nuclear fuel production facility and waste storage sites. According to documents reviewed by NPR, the facility is designed to generate approximately 9.6 gigawatts of power, intended for the data centers and industrial heat applications.
The proposed site is located on public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The BLM Utah office confirmed receipt of the application on September 30, 2026, and stated it is currently reviewing the document for completeness. Valar Atomics has also requested the use of approximately 650 acres of Utah state land for the project. The company's timeline targets the start of nonnuclear construction by late 2026, with the first reactors projected to become operational in 2028 and full site completion expected by 2032.
The project follows recent regulatory changes by the Trump administration intended to accelerate the development of small modular reactors (SMRs). In August 2025, Valar Atomics was accepted into the Department of Energy’s Reactor Pilot Program. The company previously tested a 250-kilowatt reactor, known as Ward 250, in a neighboring Utah county. During a July 1, 2026, demonstration, CEO Isaiah Taylor used the test reactor to power a single Nvidia microchip, stating the company had become the first startup to produce "nuclear electricity."
The project would change the local landscape by placing industrial nuclear and data facilities on over 9,500 acres of previously open public land. Residents and local activists, including the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance and the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah, have expressed concern regarding the scale of the development and the storage of nuclear waste on public land. The Department of Energy notes that while small reactors offer 24/7 reliability for data centers, challenges remain regarding the domestic supply chain for high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) fuel and the long-term storage of spent nuclear fuel.
The development sets a precedent for the "co-location" of energy generation and high-demand data facilities, potentially allowing companies to operate independently of the standard electric grid. This strategy aims to avoid delays in grid interconnection but has faced scrutiny from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission over concerns that "behind the meter" deals could shift transmission costs to traditional utility customers. The BLM stated that as the application moves through the National Environmental Policy Act process, the public will have opportunities to provide input. The next steps include the completion of the federal environmental review and the scheduled start of site preparation in late 2026.