This UK Startup Just Raised $19.2M to Build a Cheaper Nuclear Reactor

Jan de Vries · 2026-07-27

A Manchester-based startup called Nuclear Turbines is taking a radically different approach to nuclear power, and it just secured $19.2 million (the equivalent of about 15 million pounds) in funding to prove its concept works. This foundational round was led by IQ Capital, with participation from Rhapsody Venture Partners, Zero Carbon Capital, and Empirical Ventures. The company plans to use this capital to advance and validate its reactor design, build large-scale test rigs, and expand its team as it prepares to manufacture its first fuel elements. ### The Big Idea: Flipping Nuclear's Script Here's what makes Nuclear Turbines different. The nuclear industry has traditionally designed a reactor first, then figured out what to do with the heat it generates. Jeremy Owston, co-founder of Nuclear Turbines, explained it this way: > "The nuclear industry has always designed reactors first, then figured out what to do with the heat. We flipped this script: we started with the cheapest way to generate power and designed a reactor to fit." This is a huge mental shift. Instead of forcing a square reactor peg into a round power-generation hole, they started with the most cost-effective power generation method available and built a reactor around it. ### How It Works: Jet Engine Tech Meets Nuclear The company was spun out of BAE Systems' Launchpad initiative in 2024. It was founded by former BAE Systems Principal Engineer Jeremy Owston and prominent nuclear engineer Professor Tim Abram, in partnership with Empirical Ventures' venture studio. Nuclear Turbines is developing compact nuclear systems designed to integrate with gas turbine technology. Instead of using traditional steam turbines to generate electricity, they're replacing them with highly efficient high-temperature turbine technology normally found in jet engines and gas-fired power plants. This modular reactor architecture eliminates the bulky, expensive steam infrastructure that conventional nuclear plants require. The result? A system so compact it could be deployed 'behind the meter' on industrial sites. ### Why This Matters for Energy-Hungry Industries The startup's solution directly addresses two of nuclear power's biggest problems: cost and scale. Conventional nuclear power plants cost tens of billions of dollars and take decades to build. Nuclear Turbines aims to change that by delivering scalable, cost-effective clean power. This is particularly important for industries that need reliable, low-carbon energy around the clock: - Industrial facilities that can't afford downtime - Data centres powering our digital lives - Manufacturing plants with massive energy demands The company says its technology will make advanced nuclear power accessible and attractive to private finance, accelerating its deployment in sectors currently vulnerable to reliance on fossil fuels. ### The Team and Timing Alongside the funding, Nuclear Turbines has appointed Lauren Dickerson as Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer. Dickerson joins from Centrica, where she spent over four years as Strategy Director. Jordan Billiald, Principal at IQ Capital, summed up the opportunity: "This is the first time I've seen an SMR design that genuinely solves the economic and sustainability equation, and it's at a time when market dynamics, government ambition and regulatory reform are creating unprecedented opportunity." Nuclear Turbines is positioning itself as a company that can help the UK not get left out of the global nuclear race. With its deep engineering and nuclear heritage, the UK has a real right to win in this space, and Nuclear Turbines is the kind of company the UK venture ecosystem needs to back.