Sabey Data Centers’ 2025 Nuclear Pivot: How SMRs Are Powering the AI Revolution

Industry Adoption: Sabey Data Centers Leads the Charge in Nuclear-Powered Digital Infrastructure

Between 2021 and 2024, Sabey Data Centers (SDC) operated in a strategic, exploratory mode regarding advanced nuclear power. The company laid crucial groundwork by signaling its intent through participation in high-level government initiatives, such as the U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Initiative and its inclusion in the “Nuclear Futures Package” at COP26. This period was defined by foundational agreements, including an initial deal with TerraPower in 2022 and a more formal agreement in October 2024 to analyze costs and integration. Sabey’s actions mirrored a nascent industry trend where tech giants began contemplating nuclear energy to solve a future power problem. The focus was on building a strategic position and improving immediate energy efficiency through partnerships with cooling technology firms like JetCool Technologies, rather than committing to specific nuclear projects.

The year 2025 marked a definitive inflection point, shifting Sabey from exploration to execution. The January 2025 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with TerraPower transformed the company’s nuclear ambitions into a core strategic pillar. This was no longer a theoretical exercise but a concrete plan to deploy TerraPower’s advanced Natrium™ Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) to provide carbon-free baseload power. This pivot is a direct response to the now-imminent threat of a massive power deficit driven by AI, with data center electricity consumption projected to more than double by 2030. Sabey’s move creates a powerful first-mover advantage, establishing a new value proposition for hyperscale and AI clients: a pathway to long-term energy security that is scalable, reliable, and independent of an increasingly constrained grid. This variety of activity—from initial government engagement to a specific technology and deployment agreement—demonstrates a clear maturation curve, signaling that for industry leaders, SMRs are moving from a long-term option to a near-term strategic necessity.

Table: Sabey Data Centers’ Strategic Capacity Investments

Table: Sabey Data Centers’ Key Strategic Partnerships

Geography of Sabey Data Centers’ SMR Strategy

Between 2021 and 2024, Sabey’s geographical focus remained on expanding its existing footprint in established North American data center markets. Major capacity expansions were announced for its campuses in the Pacific Northwest (Seattle and Columbia, WA) and Austin, TX, reflecting a strategy of growing where its clients were. Its sustainability efforts were framed within this existing portfolio and through national-level participation in programs like the DOE’s Better Climate Challenge.

The 2025 MoU with TerraPower introduced a significant geographic shift in Sabey’s long-term energy strategy. The agreement explicitly identifies the Rocky Mountain region and Texas as the initial focus areas for deploying Natrium™ SMRs. This move is strategically astute, as it targets regions that offer a compelling combination of burgeoning data center demand and a potentially favorable environment for new nuclear development. Texas, in particular, has publicly stated its ambition to become an epicenter for advanced nuclear energy. This geographical pivot indicates that Sabey’s future site selection will be influenced not just by fiber connectivity and tax incentives, but by the feasibility of co-locating power generation, fundamentally changing the calculus of data center development.

Technology Maturity of Sabey Data Centers’ Nuclear Adoption

From 2021 to 2024, SMR technology was an exploratory-stage concept for Sabey Data Centers. The company’s actions centered on evaluation and due diligence, exemplified by its 2024 agreement with TerraPower to conduct cost and integration analyses. During this period, Sabey’s deployed technology investments were focused on commercially available solutions that offered immediate efficiency gains, such as advanced liquid cooling from partners like JetCool and SEGUENTE. SMRs remained a long-term, strategic hedge against future power constraints, with the broader market even showing signs of turbulence, such as NuScale’s project cancellations in the Pacific Northwest.

The year 2025 marks a crucial validation point for SMRs in the data center sector, driven by Sabey’s commitment. The company has moved beyond generic interest to select a specific, advanced technology: TerraPower’s Generation IV Natrium™ reactor. This 345 MWe sodium-cooled fast reactor, integrated with a molten salt energy storage system, is far from a standard off-the-shelf product. While the technology itself is still pre-commercial, with the first demonstration plant in Wyoming targeting a 2030 launch, Sabey’s MoU provides a vital demand signal. It elevates the Natrium™ design from a promising concept to a designated power source for a major industrial consumer, creating a clear commercialization pathway and de-risking the technology for the broader digital infrastructure market.

Table: SWOT Analysis of Sabey Data Centers’ SMR Strategy

Forward-Looking Insights and Summary

Sabey Data Centers’ strategic pivot in 2025 from exploring to actively pursuing SMR deployment is one of the most significant signals of the coming convergence between digital infrastructure and advanced energy. The data points to a clear trajectory, and market actors should watch for several key developments in the year ahead. The most critical milestone will be the transition of the TerraPower MoU into a definitive, binding collaboration agreement. This will formalize project sites, financial terms, and capacity commitments, moving the plan from paper to project pipeline.

Attention should be focused on announcements of the first designated site for a nuclear-powered data center campus, most likely in Texas or the Rocky Mountain region. Such an announcement would be a landmark event for the industry. Furthermore, all timelines for Sabey’s nuclear ambitions are directly tied to TerraPower’s regulatory progress with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for its Wyoming demonstration plant. Any delays or advancements in that process will have a direct ripple effect on Sabey’s schedule. Expect to see Sabey begin integrating the prospect of dedicated nuclear power into its future campus designs, influencing everything from site selection to electrical engineering. This bold move is gaining traction, and its success will not only secure Sabey’s energy future but also serve as a critical proof-of-concept that could trigger a wave of similar commitments across the data center industry.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did Sabey Data Centers pivot to nuclear power in 2025?
Sabey’s 2025 pivot was a direct response to the massive power deficit projected to be caused by the AI revolution. The company shifted from exploration to execution by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with TerraPower to secure a scalable, reliable, and carbon-free source of baseload power, independent of the increasingly strained electrical grid.

What specific nuclear technology is Sabey planning to use?
Sabey plans to deploy TerraPower’s Generation IV Natrium™ Small Modular Reactors (SMRs). This is a 345 MWe sodium-cooled fast reactor that includes an integrated molten salt energy storage system, allowing it to provide consistent power.

Where are the first nuclear-powered data centers likely to be built?
The agreement between Sabey and TerraPower explicitly identifies the Rocky Mountain region and Texas as the initial focus areas for deploying the Natrium™ SMRs. This move targets regions with both high data center demand and a potentially favorable environment for new nuclear development.

When will these SMR-powered data centers be operational?
The timeline is dependent on the commercialization of the technology. The article notes that TerraPower’s first demonstration plant is targeting a 2030 launch. This indicates a multi-year gap between Sabey’s current power needs and when the future nuclear supply will become available, with all timelines tied to TerraPower’s regulatory and construction progress.

What are the main risks to Sabey’s SMR strategy?
The primary risks have shifted from general market uncertainty to specific project-level challenges. These include navigating the complex and lengthy NRC regulatory approval process and the execution risk associated with TerraPower’s ability to deliver its first-of-a-kind Natrium™ plant on time and on budget.