Press Announcement, September 29, 2022

Nuclear Industry expert Steve Nesbit joins Deep Isolation as Utilities Advisor

Berkeley — Steve Nesbit, an expert in policy relating to nuclear power, has joined Deep Isolation as a Utilities Advisor.

Nesbit is the founder of LMNT Consulting Company and joins Deep Isolation as a consultant after a 40-year career in the nuclear power industry. Nesbit’s career included 37 years at Duke Energy, where he most recently served for nine years as Director of Nuclear Policy. Prior to that he was Spent Fuel Manager for the company and was heavily involved in nuclear industry technical and policy initiatives related to used fuel management. Nesbit also worked on several DOE projects including the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository and the Centralized Interim Storage Facility Project.

Steve Nesbit has joined Deep Isolation as a Utilities Advisor.

“It’s exciting to have yet another respected nuclear industry veteran join our team,” said Deep Isolation CEO Liz Muller. “His knowledge of how industry and government come together to address spent fuel management will play a critical role in progressing nuclear waste disposal.”

Nesbit received Bachelor of Science and Master of Engineering degrees in nuclear engineering from the University of Virginia. As a registered professional engineer in North Carolina, Nesbit was an adjunct faculty member at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he taught nuclear engineering. Nesbit was ANS President from June 2021 to June 2022.

“It is essential that our country makes progress toward disposal of used nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste,” said Nesbit. “I very much look forward to being part of the Deep Isolation team, which has done excellent work and is bringing much-needed innovative approaches to this area.”

After just four years as a public-facing company, Deep Isolation’s milestones include: contracts with a dozen countries across three continents, 18 patents and 90 notices of invention; a subsidiary in Europe; the acquisition of Freestone Environmental Services in the U.S.; and recently, two multi-million awards from the U.S. Government.

About Deep Isolation

Deep Isolation is a leading global innovator in nuclear waste storage and disposal solutions. Driven by a passion for environmental stewardship and scientific ingenuity, the company’s patented solution of advanced nuclear technologies enables global delivery through its partnerships with industry leaders as well as flexible IP licensing options.

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www.deepisolation.com

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Blog by Jessica Chow, September 28, 2022

Empowering the Next Generation of Nuclear Professionals

By Jessica Chow

The rapid growth of nuclear start-ups in the past two decades indicates the changing nuclear industry: an industry in need of innovation. This industry needs fresh perspectives from professionals excited to engage with nuclear technology, especially in the face of the global challenge of climate change.

The nuclear start-up life was the topic of a panel I joined recently at the Nuclear Innovation Bootcamp (NIB) in Madison, Wisconsin. Also participating were Tyler Bernstein of Zeno Power Systems, Alexia Mercier of OECD Nuclear Energy Agency, and Andy Morales of FireHydrant. We delved into the intersection of nuclear technology, innovation, and team building in the start-up space. Most of the questions we received from the Bootcamp attendees focused on how to not only succeed in the nuclear start-up space but thrive. Let’s discuss that.

What does success look like in the nuclear industry? Success looks like the further deployment of nuclear energy technology to fight climate change, continued use of nuclear material for medical purposes, and future innovation in the nuclear industry.

So how do we get there and what changes to how we approach nuclear innovation will be needed to find this success? Based on the NIB panel discussion, it seems that young professionals believe new reactor designs are key to the future success of nuclear energy. It does make sense that young industry professionals who may be unfamiliar with the complex history of nuclear power would focus on the technical aspects of nuclear. But forgoing the industry’s history misses a key opportunity for growth: to find success in the nuclear industry, especially with innovation, we need to learn from the industry’s past, especially as it pertains to its engagement with the public.

Success for the next generation of nuclear professionals must:

Listen. Learn. Adapt.

We can pull a great example of this from my co-panelist, Tyler Bernstein of Zeno Power Systems who said, “Something I believe we’ve done well as we’ve grown our team is balancing bringing onboard team members with decades of experience with industry newcomers — who are frequently non-nuclear engineers. We’ve seen this combination work well as those who have more experience can impart wisdom on how things have been in the past, while industry newcomers bring fresh and creative ideas to the table. In fact, our founding team is comprised wholly of newcomers to the nuclear industry; I believe a good part of our success to date is a result of my co-founders and I coming together with new perspectives on old problems.”

Recruiting a diverse team is part of creating a culture where different stakeholders are listened to in a constructive and meaningful way. A diverse team provides an organization with the ability to approach conversations from different perspectives. Many of the attendees at NIB are in the process of starting their own nuclear startups. To empower their success, we must also empower young professionals to build teams diverse in expertise, backgrounds, age, and race.

There is so much work to be done to prepare young professionals for the complex nuclear industry, but by questioning the traditions of the nuclear industry of the past, we can learn and change to find success in the future.

A final thank you is deserved by the organizers of the 2022 Nuclear Innovation Bootcamp, especially River Bennett of Nuclear Innovation Alliance, the panel’s moderator for the panel. It is programs such as NIB that provide much-needed resources to the young generation of the nuclear inclusive clean energy future.

*Africa Deserves a Say in Its Clean Energy Future

Meet Monica Mwanje, Advocating for a More Inclusive Nuclear Workforce

Press Release, September 19, 2022

Deep Isolation offers opportunity to enable nuclear power expansion

Berkeley —The lack of a viable spent fuel disposal solution remains an obstacle to the increasing global interest in nuclear power that guarantees energy security and helps enable a net zero world. Deep Isolation, a leading innovator in nuclear waste disposal solutions, is today kicking off an opportunity for investors to participate in the only scalable long-term solution for nuclear waste.

Deep Isolation’s advanced disposal technology brings a promising option to break through the nuclear waste disposal stalemate, enabling a more certain future for nuclear energy developers seeking to capitalize on this ESG opportunity.

With much of Europe and the world increasingly viewing nuclear as necessary for addressing both energy security and climate change, the market is primed for significant expansion. This expansion is highlighted with the International Energy Agency forecasting that the world’s nuclear capacity will more than double between 2020 and 2050 – most of that growth front-loaded. Investor interest is following, with Clean Tech, ESG, and Climate investors all increasingly leaning into advanced reactors, fusion, and ancillary services.

One of the most significant enablers for the expanded use of nuclear power is nuclear waste disposal. The U.S. is now investing heavily in nuclear back end, and starting January 1, 2023, all new nuclear power developers across the European Union will be required under the Complementary Climate Delegated Act to establish operational plans for a spent fuel disposal solution to meet Europe’s climate change aspirations.

“Deep Isolation is solving the ‘what about the waste?’ problem. Their solution is elegant, effective, distributed, and exactly what nuclear energy communities need,” said Valerie Gardner, Managing Partner of Nucleation Capital. “Happily, we expect it to be available at the right price and the right time to help enable the growth of next-generation nuclear.”

To date, Deep Isolation has raised $24 million, including a $21 million Series A raise in 2020 led by nuclear industry leader NAC International, Inc. The company’s deep borehole solution provides a new path forward for accessing the $667 billion addressable global nuclear waste disposal market.

“Deep Isolation is well-positioned to deliver significant returns on investment in timeframes that are aligned with VC requirements,” said Deep Isolation CEO and co-founder Liz Muller. “Nuclear has become not only a smart investment but a crucial one. In Europe, policymakers have now set a deadline for new nuclear investments to start disposing their spent fuel by 2050 or earlier – and Deep Isolation offers the only timely, scalable, safe, cost-effective option for most countries to meet that deadline. Similar concerns about energy security and climate change are driving demand for our solution globally.”

The company encourages interested parties to submit investment inquiries by September 23. It will be running a competitive process that will kick off on September 26. Please visit www.deepisolation.com/invest-in-deep-isolation to learn more and schedule an introductory meeting.