KUALA LUMPUR, June 12 (Bernama) -- Selected blue-chip counters trading at attractive valuations helped Bursa Malaysia close higher on Friday, despite cautious market sentiment driven by developments in West Asia, volatility in crude oil prices and uncertainty over the global interest rate outlook. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose by 4.10 points or 0.24 per cent to 1,683.63 compared with Thursday's close of 1,679.53. The key index opened 5.34 points stronger at 1,684.87 earlier today and moved between 1,679.72 and 1,685.39 throughout the session. Market breadth was negative, with losers leading gainers 533 to 479, while 561 counters were unchanged, 1,130 untraded and 33 suspended. Turnover fell to 2.79 billion units worth RM2.31 billion from 3.32 billion units worth RM2.88 billion yesterday.
NuScale Power (SMR) has seen its stock surge nearly 400% in the past year as investors bet on small modular reactors (SMRs) to power the next wave of clean energy and meet AI-driven electricity demand. Backed by nearly $1 billion in U.S. federal funding, NuScale is currently the only U.S. company with an NRC-approved SMR design, making it a frontrunner in what could be a transformative energy shift.
Why NuScale Is in the Spotlight
Regulatory Lead: The company’s 77MW reactor design has been approved by U.S. regulators, giving it a head start over rivals still navigating the licensing maze.
Federal Support: The Department of Energy has already provided $575 million in funding, and NuScale is well-positioned to win part of the DOE’s new $900 million SMR program.
AI & Clean Energy Demand: Data centers driving the AI boom are hungry for clean, stable electricity, making nuclear an increasingly attractive solution.
Financial Reality
NuScale is still a pre-revenue company, moving from R&D to commercialization.
Q1 2025 Revenue: Jumped to $13.4M from $1.4M a year ago, driven by engineering services and early tech sales.
Q1 Operating Loss: $35M, though cash reserves of $492M plus investments give it over three years of runwayat current spending.
Stock Performance and Volatility
Shares skyrocketed 445% in 2024 and continued to climb in 2025, making NuScale a high-profile “next big thing” play.
Market cap now over $13B despite no operating plants, driven largely by policy support and investor optimism.
Challenges Ahead
Utah Setback: NuScale’s first U.S. project was canceled in 2023 due to cost overruns, highlighting the risk of first-of-a-kind nuclear projects.
Execution Risk: The next 18 months are critical. NuScale needs to secure DOE funding, sign its first major “tier 1” customer, and keep its flagship Romanian SMR project on schedule for 2030.
Rising Competition: Rivals like GE Vernova-Hitachi and X-energy (backed by Amazon) are racing to deploy their own SMRs, which could quickly erode NuScale’s first-mover advantage.
Investor Takeaway
NuScale offers exposure to a potential revolution in energy. Its combination of regulatory approval, federal backing, and AI-driven demand puts it in a unique position. But it’s still a high-risk, high-reward bet with no operating plants and heavy execution challenges ahead.
For investors, NuScale is less about steady earnings today and more about betting on the company’s ability to convert its head start into actual operating reactors before competitors catch up.
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