Espoo, Finland – Steady Energy, a Finnish pioneer in small modular reactors, successfully secured the target of its €32 million funding round, among the largest in Finland this year. The round closure shows confidence from both private-sector and state-backed investors.
“Our mission is to make nuclear simple to provide affordable, emission-free heating without subsidies,” said Steady Energy’s CEO Tommi Nyman. “The smooth closure demonstrates investors’ trust in Steady Energy’s team and ability to deliver the world’s first commercial nuclear heating reactor by early 2030s.“
The round was led by 92Ventures – a Copenhagen-based VC fund focused exclusively on next-generation nuclear and nuclear-enabling innovations – and joined by:
🇳🇱 Move Energy – Dutch venture capital firm backing breakthrough climate technologies
🇫🇮 LocalTapiola – one of Finland’s leading mutual insurance companies
🇫🇮 Tesi – Finland’s state-owned industrial investment company
🇺🇸 Valo Ventures – a US-based climate-focused VC
🇫🇮 Lifeline Ventures – an early supporter of Steady, now doubling down on their commitment
Steady Energy will use the funds to strengthen its team, accelerate design efforts, expand sales activities in Sweden and Poland, and build a pilot plant in the centre of Helsinki. The company has secured preliminary agreements for up to 15 reactors in Finland.
“We are impressed with Steady Energy’s simple heat-only design which enables carbon-free, baseload heat production at an attractive cost. We believe that Steady Energy’s highly capable team, drawing on years of experience in the nuclear industry, is well positioned to bring this affordable small modular reactor (SMR) to market following the successful demonstration of a pilot plant”, said Move Energy’s Partner Frederik de Hosson.
Steady Energy previously announced reaching the round’s halfway target in March, led by 92 Ventures, now 92 Capital, a dedicated nuclear-focused fund consisting of technical and financial experts.
“Steady Energy has positioned itself as one of the most promising SMR companies in the game,” says Anatol Kjær Knudsen, Partner at 92 Capital. “We look forward to bringing additional experience and knowledge, enabling the company to reach its target of deploying the world’s first commercial heating SMR by 2030.
Majority of the funds will go towards constructing a full-scale, non-nuclear pilot plant at a recently decommissioned coal plant in Helsinki city center. Construction begins later in the year, and the pilot will physically demonstrate the LDR-50 reactor’s key safety features, well ahead of commercial deployment. Additionally, Steady Energy will use this opportunity to verify and stress-test supply chains. The project is led by Sweco, a leading engineering firm, which has contributed to every nuclear project in Finland over the past decades. This means Steady Energy gains detailed advance insight into steps required for the eventual commercial plant.
Steady Energy aims to reach ready-to-build phase by 2028. In June, it received a preliminary safety assessment from the Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority STUK, a globally esteemed regulator. STUK announced that the LDR-50 can be designed to fulfil Finnish nuclear safety standards. The company’s growing team with over 250 years of nuclear experience is complemented with a Steady Energy-led network of 200 professionals that contributes to the design, including leading professionals from Fortum, VTT, Sweco, LUT University, Tractebel, Framatome, and Westinghouse.
Competitive Advantage
“Because our reactor is small and simple, we can afford to rehearse at full scale before commercial deployment and proactively lower major risks traditionally responsible for delays and cost overruns in large-scale reactor projects”, said Tommi Nyman. “By the time all permitting are due, engineering and logistics will have been proven and tried out. No other player can currently match this ability. ”
Over 40 percent of global energy use is heat, and Steady Energy addresses an urgent need for hundreds of reactors in Europe alone from cities committed to net zero targets. Steady Energy’s shipping container-sized 50 MW reactor can also be used for cooling, industrial steam provision and desalination. The radically simple reactor delivers emission-free energy at a steady cost, running for 60 years practically without maintenance shutdowns.
At around €100 million per reactor, Steady Energy’s SMR is investable and outcompetes all alternatives by a significant margin.
About Steady Energy
Steady Energy is a Finnish technology company founded in 2023 and based in Espoo, with 40 employees under CEO Tommi Nyman. The company is developing the LDR‑50, a compact, heat-only small modular reactor (SMR).
About the LDR‑50 Reactor
• Delivers 50 MW of thermal power for district heating, industrial steam, and desalination
• Modular, underground design roughly the size of a shipping container
• Lifetime energy cost below €40/MWh, making it cost-competitive and investable without subsidies
• Near-zero emissions with a lifetime carbon footprint comparable to offshore wind (which emits ~6 gCO₂e/kWh)
• Employs pressurized light-water technology with low operating pressure (<10 bar) and temperature (≈150 °C); refuels every 2–3 years
• Designed for simplicity and safety: few moving parts, passive cooling via natural circulation, and low-pressure operation
About Move Energy
Move Energy is an early-stage venture capital firm dedicated to supporting companies pioneering hardware and software solutions to decarbonize the power, transport, and buildings sectors. With a focus on impact-driven investments, Move Energy aims to support the next generation of transformative ventures contributing to a more sustainable world. Move Energy is headquartered in Amsterdam and is backed by InvestNL, the European Investment Fund, family offices, and private investors.