Event to be held on the University of Illinois’s campus on October 24, 2025
New York, N.Y., Oct. 14, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: NNE) (“NANO Nuclear” or “the Company”), a leading advanced nuclear energy and technology company focused on developing clean energy solutions, today announced a milestone event highlighting important progress being made with NANO Nuclear’s KRONOS MMR™ research and commercial prototype at The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U. of I.) on October 24, 2025.
With the global shift toward nuclear energy accelerating, NANO Nuclear is positioning itself to deliver deployable, high efficiency microreactor systems designed to meet both industrial power needs and critical humanitarian applications. The innovative KRONOS MMR™ micro modular microreactor is currently advancing through the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s licensing process via a collaboration between NANO Nuclear and U.of I. Successful installation and operation at U. of I. will provide an unprecedented real-world demonstration of the KRONOS MMR™ platform and serve as a model for future university, government, and commercial deployments globally.
The event will be held on the campus of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U. of I.) on October 24, 2025. NANO Nuclear is collaborating with U. of I. on the development, construction, and regulatory licensing for KRONOS MMR™ prototype. The event is set to highlight site characterization and geotechnical activities performed by global infrastructure leader AECOM and serve as an essential milestone ahead of NANO Nuclear’s planned submission of a construction permit application in or around the first quarter of 2026. The event is expected to feature remarks from leaders of both U. of I. and NANO Nuclear, including Jay Yu, Founder and Chairman of NANO Nuclear; James Walker, Chief Executive Officer; and Florent Heidet, Ph.D, CTO & Head of Reactor Development. In addition, representatives from federal and state governments, supply chain partners, potential major national media outlet, and organizations supporting the project are anticipated to attend. To further commemorate this important occasion and milestone, leading members of NANO Nuclear’s engineering, licensing and regulatory teams, as well as members of NANO Nuclear’s distinguished board of executive advisors filled with former U.S. national leaders, will also be in attendance.
Developed to meet the growing demand for resilient, modular, and clean energy solutions for artificial intelligence and data centers, industrial projects, military applications, remote communities, and other commercial applications, the KRONOS MMR™ is a stationary, high-temperature gas-cooled microreactor designed to deliver 15 MWe (45 MWth) of carbon-free power, for multi-decade use across multiple industries and environments. Multiple KRONOS MMRs can be synergistically used to achieve any desired power level. Using meltdown-resistant TRISO fuel and passive helium cooling, the KRONOS MMR™ is being designed to shut down and remain in a safe state automatically without any human intervention or external power (so called “walk-away safety”) while seeking to ensure the ability to disconnect from the main grid and operate autonomously during outages or other disruptions (so called “full island-mode microgrid” capability).
Figure 1 – NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. to Host Milestone Ceremony Marking Progress with the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign for its Patented Flagship KRONOS MMR™ Energy System
“NANO Nuclear is gaining momentum and establishing itself as a leading micro modular reactor company not only in the United States but across North America,” said Jay Yu, Founder and Chairman of NANO Nuclear. “This commencement of physical work is an enormous step towards the construction of our high technology readiness level and patented KRONOS MMR™, advancing our progress and bringing us closer to deploying this pivotal technology. KRONOS MMR™, aligns with the United States’ energy security objectives by enabling domestically manufactured, dispatchable, and carbon-free baseload power — essential to powering AI infrastructure, re-shoring industrial supply chains, and asserting energy independence.”
The October 24th event is set to highlight site characterization and drilling activities performed by global infrastructure leader AECOM and serve as an essential milestone ahead of NANO Nuclear’s planned submission of a construction permit application in or around Q1 2026.
“This event represents an important milestone for NANO Nuclear, underscoring our expanding role in the nuclear technology sector and reinforcing confidence in our capacity to deliver on ambitious initiatives,” said James Walker, Chief Executive Officer of NANO Nuclear. “We will use the AECOM drilling results to finalize our construction permit application, which we expect to submit to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in or around the first quarter of 2026. This will position us ahead of other microreactor projects in North America and further reinforces our leadership in the race to commercialization.”
“With the continued growth of our technical team and the establishment of Illinois as our engineering and demonstration hub, we are accelerating the development and construction of a full-scale, full-power KRONOS MMR™ in collaboration with U. of I., with one of the world’s leading nuclear engineering institutions,” said Florent Heidet, Ph.D., Chief Technology Officer and Head of Reactor Development of NANO Nuclear. “These next steps will place us at the forefront of reactor deployment projects, enabling us to build on the momentum within the nuclear energy sector and move KRONOS MMR™ closer to commercial adoption across North America.”
“The site characterization is an important step in our push toward installation of an advanced nuclear research reactor and expansion of the university’s global leadership in education and research through at-scale demonstration of clean, resilient energy technologies,” said Caleb Brooks, Ph.D., Grainger College of Engineering Professor and project lead for the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “The data obtained from this field work will be used to support the construction permit application as it undergoes rigorous safety and environmental impact review by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.”