Nuclear Power Is Having a Moment, and These 3 Stocks Are the Best to Buy Right Now

Nuclear energy stocks have been among the market's biggest winners over the past year, handily outperforming the broader energy sector. It's not hard to imagine why. With power-hungry tech like artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing, the clean, round-the-clock power that nuclear can supply has rarely looked more relevant.

Broad exposure to nuclear energy -- such as through an exchange-traded fund (ETF) -- is one way to play this new resurgence. Another is to handpick the nuclear energy stocks yourself. With that in mind, these three stocks are well positioned to grow as the broader industry does.

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1. Oklo

Oklo (NYSE: OKLO) is an advanced nuclear company that's designing small fast-fission reactors with complementary fuel recycling.

That's a mouthful of technical jargon, so let me break it down like this: Instead of a sprawling nuclear power plant, Oklo would like to deploy smaller reactors that can supply 24/7 power while using fuel more efficiently.

Early on, Oklo had the backing of Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, and more recently, it has signed agreements with companies including Equinix (NASDAQ: EQIX), Switch, and Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) to supply power to data centers.

Oklo still needs regulatory approval to deploy reactors to commercial customers; as such, it hasn't scaled its technology nor proven it can operate reactors on a large scale. The stock is early-stage with plenty of execution risks, yet could be a big winner in the era of AI.

2. Nano Nuclear Energy

Nano Nuclear Energy (NASDAQ: NNE) is another early-stage nuclear energy company working through the NRC regulatory process.

Like Oklo, Nano is designing microreactors. Unlike Oklo, however, which is focused primarily on building and deploying reactors, Nano aims to become vertically integrated. In nuclear energy, that would mean participating in multiple parts of the supply chain, from developing reactors and fuel to transporting nuclear materials.

Another difference from Oklo is that Nano has several microreactor designs, not just one. Indeed, along with a portable reactor design, Nano is developing a space microreactor (Loki) that could be deployed for deep-space missions or extraterrestrial environments.

For what it's worth, the Trump administration has also been interested in putting a nuclear reactor on the moon to supply power to human bases. Although Nano has not been named a partner, successful deployment of a reactor could create more interest and, eventually, more opportunities.

3. NuScale Power

NuScale Power (NYSE: SMR) is developing a small modular reactor (SMR). Unlike Oklo and Nano, however, NuScale's SMR design -- two, in fact -- has been approved by the NRC.

The challenge facing NuScale isn't regulatory, but commercial. So far, the first mover in SMR technology hasn't inked a firm sale of its reactor technology. Its commercial partner, ENTRA1, has helped open the door to a potential first U.S. customer in the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which is interested in deploying 6 gigawatts (GW) of NuScale's technology. NuScale's SMRs are also expected to be deployed for a power plant project in Romania.

Even with two projects in its near future, NuScale has a lot to prove, not the least of which is deploying a reactor on time and within budget. That could take years -- its first reactor probably won't go online until after 2030 -- and revenue growth may be limited until then.

NuScale, like Oklo and Nano, is a high-risk, high-reward investment in the future of energy. Investors with a long time horizon and high tolerance for volatility might want to consider adding these nuclear stocks to their portfolios.

Steven Porrello has positions in Nano Nuclear Energy, NuScale Power, and Oklo. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Equinix and Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool recommends NuScale Power. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.