Danish company Saltfoss has sent the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) a letter of intent to begin pre-licensing of its nuclear barge. The vessel carries the seaMSR-100 molten salt reactor. If the process succeeds, it would be the first advanced marine small modular reactor to receive a US license.
The notification to the NRC is dated November 3, 2026. The next formal step is the Regulatory Engagement Plan, which the company will submit in Washington in the first quarter of 2027. The reactor produces 100 MW electric, equal to 250 MW thermal, and is designed in standardized modules: several units can fit on the same barge. According to Saltfoss, in an emergency the system shuts down and drains the fuel salt by gravity, with no operator action and no external power.
The chosen route is 10 CFR Part 53, the regulatory framework the NRC issued in March 2026 for advanced reactors. The NRC describes it as risk-informed, performance-based and technology-inclusive. Saltfoss aims to be the first developer to obtain a license under these rules. In parallel, the company is coordinating its application with South Korea’s Nuclear Safety and Security Commission under the country’s special SMR act. South Korea is expected to host some of the first commercial installations outside the United States.
The industrial model splits production between two allied hubs. The barges will be built in South Korea by partner Samsung Heavy Industries. Reactor assembly, fuel loading and final plant integration remain in the United States. The fuel is low-enriched uranium, already available through existing commercial supply chains. Maritime safety aspects are being qualified with the American Bureau of Shipping under its New Technology Qualification process.
Saltfoss, formerly Seaborg Technologies, has worked on the seaMSR for six years and completed the conceptual design in 2025, together with Idaho National Laboratory and Danish researchers. Intended applications include power and heat for coastal industrial areas, grid baseload and large data centers. The project remains in the development and licensing phase. The company has set the first half of 2030 as its target for delivering the first barge.
If the NRC confirms that Part 53 applies to the marine case, a new avenue for nuclear power would open up for shipyards and for countries with industrialized coastlines. For Europe, Denmark included, where nuclear power has been banned for forty years, the technology would be homegrown but would take industrial shape between the United States and South Korea.
