The Department of Energy in coordination with Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Idaho National Laboratory completed shipment of more than 4,700 pounds of a rare salt used in molten salt reactors to Natura Resources.
September 22, 2026
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Last week, the Department of Energy (DOE), in coordination with Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Idaho National Laboratory, completed shipment of more than 4,700 pounds of a rare salt used in molten salt reactors to Natura Resources.
The material will be used to support the development of Natura Resource’s Molten Salt Reactor, the MSR-1, located at Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas.
The company is participating in the Department’s Reactor Pilot Program, which was started to accelerate the testing of advanced reactor designs.
A New Home for Old Salt
Idaho National Laboratory issued a competitive solicitation in August 2025 for organizations interested in finding a new use for a rare salt that was originally used as a coolant in Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Molten Salt Reactor Experiment.
A mixture of lithium fluoride and beryllium fluoride called “FLiBE,” the material can be heated into a liquid to transfer heat through a reactor system.
Its properties allow molten salt reactors to operate at high temperatures and low pressures, enabling greater efficiency and passive safety features.
ORNL has stored the FLiBE since the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment ceased operations in 1969. The laboratory transferred the salt from the experiment’s original coolant tank into five large canisters in 1999. The freight shipment to Natura includes the four remaining large canisters along with two smaller canisters.
“Few materials in the nuclear industry carry the history and significance of this FLiBE inventory,” said Jordan Robison, chief executive officer of Natura Resources. “We are honored to build upon the foundation established by Oak Ridge National Laboratory and grateful to the Department of Energy for enabling its continued use in advancing molten salt reactor technology. This milestone connects one of the nation's most important reactor experiments with the next generation of nuclear innovation.”
What’s Next?
Natura plans to use the historic material in its MSR-1, a liquid-fueled molten salt research reactor under development at Abilene Christian University. The project is on track to become one of the first fueled fluoride salt molten salt reactor demonstrations in the United States since the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment.
By putting this unique government-owned resource back into service, DOE is connecting decades of American nuclear research with private-sector innovation to help advance the next generation of nuclear reactors.
DOE’s Reactor Pilot Program leverages DOE authorization to rapidly certify and construct first-of-a-kind advanced reactor designs for testing. It made history this summer when four participating reactor prototypes successfully reached criticality by July 4, 2026, exceeding President Trump’s goal and setting the tone for the American nuclear energy renaissance.
