Bluecore Energy Announces $50 Million Funding Achievement

A company developing nuclear energy solutions atop a floating barge has announced a major funding achievement.

Bluecore Energy, based in Long Beach, Calif., announced the closing of a $50 million seed financing round September 8. The achievement follows an initial $10 million pre-seed round after the company emerged from stealth in July.

The funding round was led by Silverton Partners, with investors including Slauson & Company, Harlem Capital, Precursor Ventures, LMNT and other existing contributors. New investors included companies such as MaC Ventures, Collab Capital, Vanderbilt and Scribble, as well as former leaders of Google, Tesla, Amazon and Uber.

“Bluecore Energy is pursuing a fundamentally new approach to delivering reliable, zero-emission power to some of the world’s most energy-intensive and strategically important locations,” Silverton Partners said. “We believe the combination of proven water-cooled reactor technology and a floating, modular platform has the potential to open an entirely new market for nuclear energy, and we’re excited to partner with the team as they bring that vision to life.”

Bluecore Energy, founded by Kofi Asante, announced itself publicly three months ago after securing initial pre-seed funding and establishing its headquarters.

“Six months ago, we were building the foundation,” Asante said. “Today, we have the capital, the team, the hardware and some of the most important institutions in nuclear and maritime working alongside us. Our focus now is simple: create and deliver zero-emission energy as safely and quickly as possible.”

The Bluecore Energy system is being constructed on a 185-foot tank barge provided by Pacific Maritime Group. The system is described as a compact and water-cooled solution to zero-emissions energy, a floating power plant with the ability to be relocated. The first system under development is designed to produce approximately 10 MWe (megawatt electrical) of power and will only require refueling every few years.

The system is meant to support a specific location long-term, but it has the ability to be relocated. This broadens the range of locations that Bluecore Energy can serve, including ports, critical infrastructure and surrounding communities. Rather than building power plants on land and imposing on existing communities and infrastructure, Bluecore Energy aims to create a safe and flexible solution to providing necessary nuclear energy.

“The maritime environment is not an adaptation of Bluecore Energy’s technology; it is fundamental to how the system is being designed,” said Bluecore Energy, according to the news release published on September 8.

The additional funding will support the continued development and engineering of the floating power system, as well as hardware development, testing, validation, manufacturing, regulatory and classification work and hiring as well as the advancement of the very first system to be deployed. The system continues to be developed as Bluecore Energy progresses with nuclear testing, regulatory conversations and maritime classification proceedings.

“We invested in Bluecore Energy because of the scale of the opportunity and the team’s ability to execute,” said Slauson & Company, an investor in Bluecore Energy. “What they have accomplished in a remarkably short period of time has only strengthened that conviction. This is a team building real infrastructure to address one of the most important energy challenges of our generation.”

In additional comments to The Waterways Journal, Asante noted that while Bluecore Energy is currently meant for domestic use, the need for reliable zero-emission energy is also felt outside the United States. For now, the company is focusing on developing its system at its home port for national use. The system is also being engineered for onshore use, though, according to Asante, future systems could be implemented miles offshore through the use of subsea cables.

“Our priority is safety first, and then speed,” Asante said. “We know energy isn’t a nice-to-have; it’s a need. We’re working toward being able to provide electricity within the next few years, while moving through the engineering, testing and regulatory processes required to do that safely and responsibly.”

While the floating power plant is still under development, conversations surrounding classification and regulations are taking place. Bluecore Energy has continuously been in conversation with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the U.S. Coast Guard throughout the development process. According to the NRC and Asante, federal regulations already in place to classify light-water reactor technology can be used to license maritime nuclear reactors. Nuclear and maritime frameworks can coalesce to apply to the same technology such as floating nuclear plants.

“The regulatory landscape for commercial nuclear maritime is coming together at exactly the right time,” said Megan Moyette, licensing and safety lead at Bluecore Energy and a 13-year Navy nuclear submarine officer. “The MOU between the NC and Coast Guard signals that the federal government is taking maritime nuclear seriously, and our experience so far has been encouraging. We’ve had both agencies at the table from our very first meeting, actively coordinating. That kind of early collaboration gives us a lot of confidence in the path forward.”

Bluecore Energy announced the establishment of its headquarters at the Port of Long Beach, Calif., in July. According to the news release, the port and the U.S. Maritime Administration (MarAd) entered into a first-of-its-kind Memorandum of Cooperation to explore maritime energy systems, including the integration of small modular reactors, microgrids, shoreside power infrastructure and advanced vessel propulsion technologies.

“Guided by our new 2050 vision, the Port of Long Beach is preparing for a future defined by electrification, growing energy demand and the transition to zero-emissions operations, which require hundreds of megawatts of energy,” said Dr. Noel Hacegaba, CEO of the Port of Long Beach. “Meeting that future will require new technologies and approaches to energy sources. We are excited to welcome Bluecore Energy to the Port of Long Beach and its commitment to developing zero-emissions energy SMR solutions alongside the maritime community.”

Bluecore Energy is continuing its development work at the Port of Long Beach under a non-fueled approach, with a current focus on developing and validating its monitoring, sensor and control systems.