Data-Center Co-Location
MetroVolt is the burner configured to sit on the data-center campus it powers — firm, continuous electricity delivered next to the load.
Generation on the campus
Data centers need large, constant, high-reliability power, and they increasingly compete for grid capacity and interconnection queue slots. MetroVolt's premise is to put firm generation on the same site as the computing load. The machine's compact footprint and near-zero water use are what make that physically possible where a conventional thermal plant could not fit.
Why the burner fits this role
- Firm, 24/7 output matches a data center's flat, high load factor
- Steady-state operation with no intrinsic pulse limit
- On-site generation reduces exposure to transmission constraints
- Modular units scale with the build-out of compute halls
Load and generation together
Co-locating generation and load shortens the electrical path and can improve overall reliability, since the site is less dependent on distant transmission. A grid connection is still valuable for backup and for exporting surplus, but the primary flow is machine-to-load on the same campus. The waste heat from the small neutron and radiation channels is also available on site.
MetroVolt and Aegis are the same burner core in different housings; MetroVolt is the grid-adjacent, load-following configuration. Like the rest of the burner program it is a design study — the co-location case is built on the machine's physical properties, with the test unit around 2032 as the proving step.
The arrangement also shortens the electrical distance between generation and consumption, which reduces transmission losses and exposure to distant faults — a resilience benefit that follows directly from putting firm generation on the same campus as the load it serves.