Fission technology and nuclear fuel recycling company Oklo Inc. said it will be acquired by AltC Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company, and will seek a listing on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “OKLO.”
The transaction values Oklo at a pre-money equity value of $850 million, and is expected to deliver up to $500 million in gross proceeds from cash held in AltC’s trust account, subject to redemptions by AltC shareholders.
No existing Oklo shareholders are expected to receive cash as part of the transaction, as all existing shareholders will roll their existing equity into the combined company. In connection with the transaction, AltC’s sponsor agreed to subject all of its founder equity to performance hurdles, aligning with the long-term value creation and performance of Oklo. Additionally, the Oklo founders and AltC’s sponsor committed to long duration lock-ups.
Upon completion of the transaction, Oklo expects to have up to $516 million in cash on its balance sheet, which is expected to be used to support its go-to-market strategy for clean energy production targeted to go online in 2026 or 2027, and a commercial-scale fuel recycling facility, expected to begin construction by the early 2030s. The deal also is expected to fund the commercialization of Oklo’s power plants andfurther technology integration.
The deal has been approved by the boards of directors of Oklo and AltC and is expected to close in late 2023 or early 2024 subject to approval by AltC shareholders, Oklo shareholders, AltC having available cash at closing of at least $250 million, and other customary closing conditions.
AltC was co-founded by Sam Altman and Churchill Capital in July 2021. Altman is CEO of AltC and has served as chairman of Oklo since 2015.
Oklo plans to commercialize its liquid metal fast reactor technology with the Aurora powerhouse, which is designed to produce up to 15 MW of electricity on both recycled nuclear fuel and fresh fuel. Oklo said its fission technology first was demonstrated by the Experimental Breeder Reactor-II, which sold and supplied power to the grid and showed waste recycling capabilities over 30 years of operation.
The company also has secured a site use permit from the U.S. Department of Energy and a fuel award from the Idaho National Laboratory for a commercial-scale advanced fission power plant in Idaho, which is targeted to go online in 2026 or 2027.
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