Kairos Power partners with University of Tennessee
Kairos Power partners with University of Tennessee, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025
- The Tennessee Valley Authority is giving a $3 million endowment to the University of Tennessee’s nuclear engineering department.
- This funding aims to advance clean energy, recruit faculty and strengthen East Tennessee’s role in nuclear innovation.
- The investment supports a growing nuclear industry in the region, which welcomed $2 billion worth of private investments announced for Oak Ridge in the final quarter of 2025.
- TVA’s goal is to develop a skilled local workforce to meet the increasing demands of the nuclear sector.
The Tennessee Valley Authority is giving $3 million to the University of Tennessee at Knoxville’s nuclear engineering department, as the nation’s largest public power provider aims to ramp up nuclear development in alignment with President Donald Trump’s quest for U.S. energy dominance.
The $3 million endowment announced Jan. 8 will be used to fund the department’s chair and “reflects a shared vision for advancing clean energy solutions and strengthening East Tennessee’s role as a hub for nuclear innovation,” according to a joint news release from UT and TVA.
New nuclear companies promised to invest nearly $2 billion in Oak Ridge alone during the last quarter of 2025, and UT regularly taps into East Tennessee’s energy infrastructure and expertise. California-based Kairos Power opened a nuclear simulator on campus in 2025 to mimic a control room for training operators and teaching students, and U.S. News and World Report ranked UT’s nuclear engineering graduate program No. 3 among all universities that same year.
TVA’s endowment, according to the release, is designed to promote faculty recruitment in the department, expand academic offerings and enhance workforce development.
“We are grateful to have an industry leader like TVA investing in our expertise and working alongside us to grow Tennessee’s talent pipeline, drive innovation and help build East Tennessee’s nuclear renaissance,” UT Chancellor Donde Plowman said in the release.
To help East Tennessee realize its potential, Gov. Bill Lee created a state Nuclear Energy Fund in 2023 that, according to the release, allowed UT to launch a nuclear engineering department minor the following year. TVA had a hand in shaping the minor, with CEO Don Moul offering guidance around the needs and requirements for students wishing to pursue it.
UT’s talent for nuclear engineering can be attributed, in part, to a longtime regional focus. East Tennessee has roots in the Manhattan Project and has been a leader in nuclear science for close to a century. Oak Ridge is home to the largest multiprogram national science lab, and a private boom in the nuclear business has been taking shape in East Tennessee for years.
More than 40% the energy mix from TVA, headquartered in Knoxville, comes from nuclear generation, according to the release. TVA has announced partnerships in the past year with Kairos, NuScale, Type One Energy and other companies to propel nuclear innovation.
Moul said in the release the $3 million endowment is “a strategic investment in America’s energy future.”
“By supporting the development of a highly skilled homegrown nuclear workforce,” he said, “we’re ensuring that TVA and our industry partners have access to the talent needed to meet the growing demands of the nuclear sector in East Tennessee and across the Valley.”
TVA has also been under pressure from federal officials to accelerate the pace of nuclear development, including for a small modular reactor project at the Clinch River nuclear site. The utility was challenged in 2025 when Trump firings left the TVA board without the quorum needed to conduct business. That quorum was restored in December when the Senate confirmed four of Trump’s nominees, including Knoxville attorney Jeff Hagood.
A TVA board nomination for Nashville businessman Lee Beaman has been sent from the Senate back to Trump.
Mariah Franklin reports on technology and energy for Knox News. Email: [email protected]. Signal: mariahfranklin.01
