Chevron Invests in Zap Energy startup developing modular nuclear reactor

American Chevron Corp. announced an investment in Zap Energy Inc. is a Seattle start-up company developing a next-generation modular nuclear reactor.

“Chevron Technology Ventures’ investment in fusion is an opportunity to strengthen the company’s focus on a diverse portfolio of low-carbon energy resources with the ability to provide worldwide access to affordable, reliable and cleaner energy”, – the company said in a statement.

“Conventional nuclear power uses nuclear fission, which involves the splitting of a large unstable nucleus into smaller elements and results in long-lived radioactive waste. Nuclear fusion occurs when the nuclei of light elements (usual hydrogen) collide with enough force to fuse to form a heavier element – a process that releases a significant amount of energy without greenhouse gas emissions and a limited amount of long-lived radioactive waste”, – explained in the press release.

Zap Energy, founded in 2018, intends to use the cross-flow plasma stabilization method for containment and compression.

“We view fusion technology as a promising low-carbon energy source”, – the company quoted Chevron Technology Ventures President Barbara Burger as saying.

This is the 10th investment by the Chevron Future Energy Fund, which started in 2018 to explore disruptive technologies that enable macrodecarbonation.

Chevron, the second-largest oil and gas company in the United States after ExxonMobil. The company produces 3 million barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Source: fixygen.ua