DC firm secures $40M to build ‘micro-nuclear’ plants for cleaner data center energy

A DC-based company aiming to ease clean energy implementation with micro nuclear power plants just landed a major raise to expand staff and build out project development in Europe. 

Last Energy today announced a $40 million Series B, bringing its total raise to $64 million since its founding in 2019. Founder and CEO Bret Kugelmass credits the firm’s rapid growth to energy demands from data centers “needing significantly more power than before.” About half of customers are data center developers, he said.

The company’s microreactors have a higher energy capacity than wind or solar renewable energy, per Kugelmass, who said the scalability of Last Energy’s design is an additional bonus. 

“[Data center developers] want something that functions like an iPhone; a small, mass-manufacturable product that comes ready out of the box,” Kugelmass told Technical.ly. “That’s our approach, which enables us to deliver units faster and at significantly lower cost.”

It also removes a reliance on the power grid, which will not be able to handle the number of planned data centers in Virginia, experts recently told Technical.ly. 

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Currently, Last Energy primarily works in Europe, where it has commercial agreements for 80 plants, including a large presence in the United Kingdom. It’s targeting major growth, with a goal to build 10,000 units in the next 15 years. 

None of the plants are yet in use; the target is to get the first up and running by 2026, Kugelmass said. The team is also in the early stages of crafting two other prototypes. 

During its first two fundraising rounds, Last Energy was focused on developing its first prototypes and generally entering the market, Kugelmass said. This recent round was led by Austin, Texas’ Gigafund with participation from the San Francisco-based Autodesk Foundation, plus other investors. 

Some funds will go toward “building inroads” with policymakers and regulators, per Kugelmass. At April’s Data Center World conference in DC, Last Energy displayed a prototype to raise awareness about the tech. 

It’s been a busy year for the company internally. Since August 2023, it’s brought on 31 new staffers, for a total of 70 employees. New hires include a global head of safety and licensing and regulatory leads for Last Energy’s target markets in Poland, Romania and the UK. 

Last Energy’s overall aim is to disseminate more clean energy in a more accessible way than a traditional nuclear plant, according to Kugelmass. 

“Historically, nuclear plants have been so large and complex that they create inevitable cost overruns and construction delays,” he said. “So if you care about expanding access to clean energy, that’s the problem to solve.”

The PWR-20, Last Energy’s current plant design, is meant to be created, transported and then assembled within 24 months — like a Lego kit. 

“We’re offering all the inherent benefits of nuclear power,” Kuglemass said, “but packaging it in a way that’s fast and affordable.”