Blykalla Raises $50m as it Advances Plans to Power Data Centers

Swedish small modular reactor (SMR) start-up Blykalla has closed a $50 million (€42m) financing round to accelerate development of its lead-cooled SMR, with a focus on meeting growing demand from the data center sector.

Blykalla said that it will use the capital to scale testing and validation work at an advanced reactor test site near the Oskarshamn nuclear power station, progress design and engineering of the first reactor units, and advance commercial and regulatory efforts to secure a deployment site and necessary licensing.

The partnership aims to evaluate the technical and commercial viability of co-locating hyperscale data center capacity with an SMR on the site, including engagement with municipalities and defining possible commercial power purchase arrangements. A joint steering committee is now set to examine the site and business model.