The Army is rolling out a broad new nuclear initiative to produce electricity for bases worldwide, particularly in far-off or disputed areas where acquiring fuel could be challenging, Fox News Digital has learned.
Over the next five years, “hundreds of millions” of dollars will be invested in the Janus Project, according to Dr. Jeff Waksman, the Army official heading the endeavor, to deploy next-generation commercial microreactors at military locations.
“Great power conflict is defined by who can move their resources around,” Waksman stated. As modern warfare increasingly relies on drones, directed-energy weapons, and artificial intelligence, energy needs are only expected to rise. Furthermore, as war planners get ready for a potential battleground in the Indo-Pacific with China, “our ability to move energy around the oceans has never been more challenged,” he noted.
“Providing 24/7 power is a huge challenge. Currently, military bases are entirely powered by fossil fuels. With current technology, it is impossible to provide 24/7 power using solar, wind, and batteries,” Waksman explained. “Therefore, the only way to overcome the existing fuel constraints is through nuclear power.”
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The new plan follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump earlier this year, directing the Department of War to have an Army-regulated nuclear reactor operating at a U.S. military site by September 2028.
The Department of the Army will lead the initiative, known as the Janus Program, and will serve as the executive agent for the mission. Waksman described Janus as a “real hardware program” focused on delivering actual energy capacity rather than a policy idea. “Many nuclear projects in the past have peaked at the press release,” he commented. “This is not one of them.”
As part of Janus, the Army will collaborate with the Defense Innovation Unit and the Department of Energy’s national laboratories to manage the design and testing of commercial microreactors. These reactors will be commercially built and operated, not owned by the military. To incentivize private investment, the Army will employ a milestone-based contracting approach similar to NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program. This is the same strategy that facilitated the launch of the commercial space sector by funding companies like SpaceX and Boeing to achieve crucial technical milestones instead of paying for conventional government procurement.
The Army anticipates that this adaptable model will speed up development, decrease costs, and stimulate a sustainable market for small reactors that could eventually supply energy to both military and civilian infrastructure.
Waksman stated that construction of the first hardware is not anticipated before 2027, which he referred to as “light speed” for a nuclear program. Initial efforts will heavily concentrate on materials science and supply chains, which he indicated remain significant obstacles.
“To supply components that are viable under the conditions of a nuclear reactor, you need certified suppliers — and there are simply not enough,” he said. “One of our aims is to help strengthen and consolidate the industrial base so that multiple companies can utilize the same qualified suppliers.”
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The Army intends to work with several vendors, each expected to construct a minimum of two reactors — the first serving as a prototype and the second improved based on lessons learned.
In addition to powering domestic facilities, officials claim Janus will help address one of the most critical logistical challenges in a potential conflict with China: transporting energy across vast ocean distances. Waksman used Guam as an example — an island that sources over 90 percent of its electricity from imported oil transported by foreign-flagged tankers across thousands of miles of contested sea lanes.
“Having a system that can supply power continuously for years without needing resupply would be a complete game-changer,” he stated.
For the time being, the reactors will stay within the U.S., but Waksman mentioned that the technology is being developed with future expeditionary applications and commercial spin-offs in mind.
“The Army does not want to be the only purchaser of these reactors,” he said. “If we can get industry to the sixth or seventh unit, where they can sell to commercial partners, then we’ve succeeded.”
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Nuclear microreactors are compact, factory-produced power systems that employ the same fundamental principles as traditional nuclear plants but are much smaller. They typically generate between one and 20 megawatts of electricity — enough to power a small town or a military base — and can function for years without needing to be refueled.
Unlike large commercial reactors, which can take a decade to build, microreactors are made for quick deployment. They can be transported by truck or plane and set up on-site in a matter of weeks, delivering consistent, carbon-free energy in locations where fuel delivery is difficult or risky.
