The activity is being carried out under a lease agreement with NorthStar that gives Zeno Power access to specialized nuclear-grade infrastructure, enabling initial deliveries to government customers as early as 2027, followed by a planned ramp-up in production capacity and targeting the ability to scale nuclear battery production from 2028 onward.
The work is based at the Vallecitos complex, a 1,600-acre site established in 1957 that once hosted the US’ first privately owned nuclear power plant and held Power Reactor License No. 1 issued by the Atomic Energy Commission. The site historically supported reactor research, fuel testing, and isotope production.
In March 2025, former operators finalized an agreement with NorthStar to carry out decommissioning and restoration of the wider facility. That remediation work will continue across the site in parallel with Zeno’s manufacturing operations within a designated hot cell area.
Decontaminated hot cells brought online
According to Zeno Power co-founder and CEO Tyler Bernstein, the Vallecitos site represents a foundational location in the history of US commercial nuclear energy, and the company intends to build on that legacy through its work on nuclear batteries for critical national missions…