An hour west of Houston, where suburban sprawl surrenders to cow pasture, sits a cavernous industrial workshop in which welders and pipe fitters assemble equipment bound for oil refineries and drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. “These guys have been working for decades to modularize components for high pressures and temperatures,” says Bret Kugelmass, 36, the founder and CEO of Washington, D.C.-based Last Energy. That’s why he came here, to VGas LLC, when he wanted a prototype of the small, modular nuclear fission reactors he’s betting could play a big role in cutting down on fossil fuels.
Inspired by Kugelmass’ open-sourced design and using mostly off-the-shelf components, VGas fabricated almost all the parts for a basic small light-water reactor and crammed them into nine shipping container-size modules. It took only two days to bolt them together.
To be clear, this wasn’t a working prototype— in fact, its 75-ton reactor pressure vessel is cut away to show how standardized fuel assemblies of zirconium rods filled with pellets of enriched uranium fuel could nestle inside. “We’re not doing any new chemistry or reactor physics,” Kugelmass emphasizes. “Our core innovation is the delivery model of a nuclear power plant. We’re just packaging it in a different way.”
We’re talking old-fashioned fission technology here—the kind that for decades has been used to generate energy by splitting uranium atoms apart. It’s the opposite of nuclear fusion, which is how the sun generates energy: by fusing hydrogen atoms. For decades fusion research has stalled because scientists could not coax more energy out of fusion reactions than it took to trigger them. Recent breakthroughs show promise, but even in the most optimistic scenarios commercial fusion is many years away.
Esta historia es de la edición April 2023 de Forbes Middle East - English.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición April 2023 de Forbes Middle East - English.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
WATCHING OUT FOR THE WEALTHY
Faisal Al-Hamad, CEO of Kuwait-based NBK Wealth, has been leading the NBK Group's client-centric businesses under a unified umbrella since 2021. With over $20 billion in assets under management, he's now planning for expansion.
Middle East Forbes THE MIDDLE EAST'S TOP 100 TRAVEL & TOURISM LEADERS 2024
Thanks to their geographical position and historical and cultural richness, Middle East countries are attracting both tourists and investors.
PARTY WITH PURPOSE
New Forbes billionaire Kabir Mulchandani, Founder and Chairman of FIVE Holdings, is building an entertainment ecosystem with a sustainable footprint. Now, he's talking IPO plans.
EMPIRE BUILDING
Hussain Sajwani, Founder and Chairman of the DAMAC Group, has built a property empire and accumulated over $5 billion in wealth since establishing the group in 1982. As he continues to seek out new opportunities, he's also supporting the next generation as they follow in his footsteps.
The Middle East's RICHEST BILLIONAIRES 2024
It's been a banner year for the mega-wealthy. Forbes found an unprecedented 2,781 billionaires around the globe for this year's World's Billionaires list-141 more than in 2023 and 26 more than the previous record, set in 2021.
Riches from Rags
Investors have blown billions of dollars on loss-making luxury clothing resale firms. VINTED, an unlikely startup from Lithuania, finally cracked the code.
The New Goal Standard
JORGE MAS took a risk with a lucrative bet on Lionel Messi and quickly transformed Inter Miami into MLS's second billion-dollar franchise. But now the clock is ticking.
Reasons To Seek Adventure
Whether it’s the exhilaration of free-falling out of the sky or the thrill of being immersed among the shark-filled reefs of the Indian Ocean, adventure enthusiasts are drawn by the allure of life-changing experiences. Here are some reasons why.
THE MIDDLE EAST'S 30 MOST VALUABLE BANKS 2024
MENA’s banking sector has shown resilience over the last year, supported by higher interest rates and oil prices.
INVESTING AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr, Cofounders of Egypt-based digital investment platform Thndr, are facing competition from brokerages and investment banks to democratize investing. Having seen exponential growth in four years, they’re now looking at expanding to the U.A.E. and Saudi Arabia.