Do NuScale Power and Oklo Have a New Opportunity That's Out of This World?

Key Points

• NASA has ambitions to deploy a nuclear reactor on the Moon by 2030.

• NuScale Power and Oklo are two leading designers of small modular reactors.

• But some privately held companies may be better suited to win NASA's approval.

• 10 stocks we like better than NuScale Power ›

With few exceptions, nuclear energy stocks have provided stellar returns in 2025. From new collaborations that small modular reactor (SMR) makers like NuScale Power (NYSE: SMR) and Oklo (NYSE: OKLO) are announcing to President Donald Trump's executive orders meant to advance development of the nuclear industry, investors have been charged up about the prospects of nuclear energy stocks.

But a new opportunity for SMR makers has emerged recently that investors will want to familiarize themselves with sooner rather than later.

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NASA is charged up about its prospects on the moon

At a recent press conference, Sean Duffy, Secretary of the Department of Transportation and acting National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) administrator, stated that one of the space agency's goals is to deploy a 100-kilowatt nuclear reactor on the Moon by 2030 as part of the Artemis program.

Scheduled to launch in 2027, Artemis 3 intends to return humans to the lunar surface, where they will perform science activities for six days and then return to Earth. Subsequent to the successful completion of Artemis 3, NASA intends to start sending assets to the lunar surface in preparation for the United States establishing a longer-term human presence.

Although Duffy didn't identify the nuclear technology by name, SMRs are ideally suited for the plan to deploy a 100-kilowatt fission reactor that he identified during the press conference.

Who could be the winners from the lunar-based ambition for nuclear deployment?

Currently, there are no SMRs in operation; however, NuScale Power and Oklo are two companies at the forefront of developing the technology, making them potential candidates to benefit from NASA's goal of deploying a nuclear fission reactor on the moon.

NuScale Power has two SMR designs -- a 50 megawatt-electric (MWe) and a 77 MWe -- approved by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The company's SMRs can also be scaled in various configurations up to 924 MWe. Oklo, on the other hand, is designing SMRs, dubbed Aurora powerhouses, that are able to produce 15 MWe to 75 MWe. Since the NRC rejected Oklo's design application for its Aurora powerhouses in 2022, the company has been working to complete a new application, addressing the missing information that the NRC had identified.

But it's critical for investors to also recognize that there are other companies that will likely be vying for the contract from NASA. One company that seems particularly well suited for the mission is Radiant, a privately held company that's also committed to developing SMR technology. Unlike NuScale Power and Oklo, Radiant's Kaleidos reactor is designed to be considerably smaller: 1 MWe.

In fact, Radiant advertises the Kaleidos reactor as a replacement for diesel generators. Typically, diesel generators produce around 1,000 kilowatts to 3,000 kilowatts, so the Kaleidos reactor seems like a more desirable configuration than the SMRs that NuScale Power and Oklo are currently designing.

Another potential contender is X-Energy. Like Radiant, X-Energy is privately held, so nuclear energy investors may be less familiar with the company than its publicly held brethren. X-Energy is currently developing an 80-MWe SMR that can also be scaled into various configurations.

Should investors be supercharged about NASA's plans?

While NASA's plans to deploy a nuclear reactor on the Moon by 2030 may excite the imaginations of space enthusiasts, the reality is that the plan seems incredibly ambitious. However, if we assume that NASA succeeds in adhering to its timeline -- a considerable assumption -- it's not a certainty that NuScale Power or Oklo will receive the thumbs-up from NASA to supply the necessary equipment.

Add to the fact that Radiant, X-Energy, and other companies will be motivated to compete for the opportunity to deploy a nuclear reactor on the Moon, and investors would be unwise to power their portfolios with NuScale Power or Oklo solely based on the presumption that they will benefit from NASA's plan.

This is not to say that NuScale Power and Oklo should be completely dismissed. Both companies are well worth further investigation from nuclear energy-focused investors for reasons that transcend NASA's lunar ambition.

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Scott Levine has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends NuScale Power. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.