Key Points
NuScale Power ended the second quarter with nearly $1.1 billion in cash.
The loss from operations in the second quarter was about $65 million.
NuScale Power (NYSE: SMR) is a high-risk investment, as evidenced by its generating just $75,000 in revenue in the second quarter of 2026 against cost of sales of $227,000. And that doesn't even take into consideration the company's other expenses. Which is why it is impressive that it raised roughly $985 million in the first half of 2026, bringing its cash balances to roughly $1.1 billion. Here's how long the company has before it needs more cash.
What does NuScale Power do?
NuScale Power is attempting to build and sell small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs). It has an approved design and is already starting to set up its manufacturing capabilities. The company has achieved a lot, but it is still missing one crucial piece: a first customer.
Missed AI’s "Act 1"? Act 2 Could Be 15x Bigger. Most investors think they missed the AI boat because they didn't buy Nvidia in 2005. But according to our analysts, we’re only at the end of "Act 1"—the R&D phase. "Act 2" is the global rollout. Continue »
Image source: Getty Images.
That's basically what Wall Street is waiting for, even though NuScale has some fires in the iron. For example, RoPower, a Romanian power company, has approved a nuclear project that would use six NuScale SMRs, but it still needs to secure project financing. And NuScale is working with ENTRA1 Energy and the Tennessee Valley Authority on a project that could lead to a sale, but it just isn't there yet.
This is why NuScale's cash burn is so important to monitor. When you add in research and development spending and selling, general, and administrative costs, the company's loss from operations totaled $64 million in the second quarter. That's actually not so bad when you compare it to the $1.1 billion in cash the company has, suggesting NuScale could muddle along for another four years before cash would become a problem.
Why is NuScale already lining up more cash?
That said, NuScale just set up a new at-the-money stock program to raise as much as $750 million in new capital. It doesn't need to sell that stock right now, but it is clearly preparing to do so and likely for good reason. At the moment, it is basically in a holding pattern as it waits to sign its first official sale. When that happens, it needs to start manufacturing its SMRs, which will be a costly effort.
In other words, investors have two different issues to watch. NuScale appears to have plenty of cash on hand to support the business as it works toward its first sale. But once it makes its first sale, spending will likely accelerate quickly, and its cash burn will increase materially. Even there, however, the company appears prepared, as evidenced by the at-the-money stock program it has implemented. Essentially, even though you should continue to watch the company's cash hoard, it looks like NuScale is positioned fairly well from a cash perspective right now.
Reuben Gregg Brewer has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends NuScale Power. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.