On Wednesday, April 8, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Air Force and the Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) selected Buckley Space Force Base in Colorado and Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana as the first potential locations to receive nuclear microreactors under the Advanced Nuclear Power for Installations (ANPI) program, which was launched on June 5, 2024.
Image: Westinghouse Electric Corporation
As emphasized, “This decision marks a critical step in ensuring that the military can carry out key missions without disruption, thereby strengthening national security.” The first location is home to the Joint Overhead Persistent Infrared Center within the Combined Force Space Component Command (CFSCC). The second hosts the USAF’s 341st Missile Wing, which includes three missile squadrons – the 10th, 12th, and 490th – each operating 50 silos for LGM-30G Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles, which will in the future be replaced by the LGM-35A Sentinel.
The ANPI program, carried out jointly by the military and the DIU, is intended to deploy advanced nuclear microreactors at Air Force installations, with the systems to be owned and operated by contractors in cooperation with commercial companies from the nuclear sector. These companies are expected to deploy, license, build, operate, and eventually decommission the microreactors.
“By advancing the use of next-generation nuclear energy, the DAF is strengthening the energy security of our power projection platforms and contributing to long-term national energy leadership,” said Nancy Balkus, deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force for Infrastructure, Energy and Environment. “This initiative represents a critical step in ensuring the department remains the world’s premier Air Force and Space Force.”
Subject-matter experts from the Department of the Air Force and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory carried out extensive data reviews and on-site analysis, assessing environmental factors, nuclear safety, and energy integration. Buckley and Malmstrom were selected as the preferred locations for ANPI reactors because of their utility infrastructure, land availability, and mission-critical requirements.
In the coming months, the two bases will be matched with the ANPI nuclear technology best suited to their installation energy needs, with deployment expected by 2030 or earlier.
The ANPI program is separate from the microreactor pilot program at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska, which is an independent effort focused on demonstrating the feasibility and operational benefits of using a microreactor at a single installation. It is worth recalling that Eielson was announced in 2019 as the site for a project to deploy an experimental miniature nuclear reactor for energy purposes under the pilot program, and it is to become operational by the end of 2027.
Ward 250 portable 5 MW nuclear microreactor developed by Valar Atomics / Photo: Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Eric Brann, U.S. Navy
Not Just ANPI
The U.S. Department of Defense is pursuing several initiatives related to nuclear energy. Under the Nuclear Reactor Pilot Program, it recently conducted tests involving the air transport of Valar Atomics’ Ward 250 portable 5 MW nuclear microreactor. The program is intended to provide military bases with energy independence and reduce their reliance on the civilian power grid.
Earlier, nine potential locations were announced where miniaturized nuclear reactors will be deployed as power sources under the U.S. Army’s Janus program.
Also in 2019, the Small Mobile Nuclear Reactor (SMNR) program, code-named Project Pele (previously Project Dilithium), was launched. It is intended to produce a system weighing less than 40 metric tons and generating 1–5 MW of output, using what is known as an Advanced Gas Reactor (AGR). On March 24, 2021, two contractors were selected to build prototypes: BWX Technologies of Lynchburg, Virginia, and X-energy of Greenbelt, Maryland.
It is worth emphasizing that all of these initiatives were launched during President Donald Trump’s first term and were later continued. At the same time, the current administration has directed the Department of Defense, in cooperation with the Department of Energy, to enter into long-term supply agreements for the purchase of electricity generated by coal-fired power plants to power military installations and key defense facilities.
According to the Department of Energy, nuclear microreactors are compact enough to be transported by road, rail, or aircraft. In theory, they can generate up to 50 MW of power, but they typically produce less than 20 MW and are designed to operate continuously for up to 10 years — or potentially longer — without needing to be connected to commercial power grids. Their mobility and resilience make them particularly attractive to the Department of Defense, which must contend with vulnerabilities in the grid arising from natural disasters, cyberattacks, or physical sabotage of civilian infrastructure.