Amentum shows part of its hand for Golden Dome and nuclear power

For this chapter of itself as a public company, Amentum is prioritizing large enterprise contracts that task the awardee with a little bit of everything across its work areas and phases.

The Golden Dome vision for a new, nationwide missile defense system would certainly qualify as a large enterprise effort with many moving parts beyond just the products needed to make it work.

During Amentum’s fiscal third quarter earnings call Wednesday, chief executive John Heller laid out for investors what the company believes it can bring to bear for whatever Golden Dome looks like in future years.

Space-based and -centric technologies will be a part of making Golden Dome work, no matter which path the Missile Defense Agency takes with its acquisition strategy. MDA is taking industry comments through Aug. 19 on its draft solicitation for the $151 billion, multiple-award contract being called SHIELD.

“Our expertise at Space Force and Missile Defense Agency, and our decades of experience supporting NASA on rocket design and technology development, should put us in a great position to get a key spot on SHIELD, and then to support the development initiatives that are going to come out on SHIELD,” Heller said.

Amentum’s website describes its relationship with MDA as including the Integrated Research and Development for Enterprise Solutions contract, through which the company helps with testing and other operations related to missile defense systems.

Steve Arnette, Amentum’s chief operating officer, told analysts the company has worked with MDA to develop an integrated digital data environment for use in simulation activities.

The company has also developed digital twins and ground-to-space architectures for MDA with an eye toward helping operators make more rapid decisions, Arnette added.

“A lot of these underlying enabling technologies we've developed with MDA, and those will become key for Golden Dome,” Arnette said.

Amentum’s Space Force portfolio Heller now also includes a potential 10-year, $4 billion contract Amentum won in June to help operate and maintain a pair of ranges the service branch runs for launch customers.

“We see it as the opportunity to not only be a larger supporter for Space Force, but be in a position to also be much closer to commercial space because that's so integrated in that contract,” Heller said. “That will put us at the key launch areas where we'll have the opportunity to work side-by-side with all the major commercial space launch providers.”

The global nuclear power landscape represents a second opportunity set that Amentum would likely characterize as in its purview of large enterprise contracts.

Roughly $700 million worth of Amentum’s annual revenue today is in the nuclear market, Chief Financial Officer Travis Johnson said. Amentum reported $13.8 billion in pro forma revenue for its 2024 fiscal year ended Sept. 27.

As Heller pointed out during his opening remarks, the growth of compute and artificial intelligence infrastructure is putting more stress on energy supply and the electric grid.

Amentum’s current work in the nuclear realm primarily centers on gigawatt reactors, but Heller said the company is looking to apply that experience in small modular reactors. These are widely seen as a scalable and flexible system for powering data centers and high-density compute zones.

Unveiled in mid-July, the Trump administration’s AI Action Plan for maintaining the U.S.’ leadership position in artificial intelligence technologies includes one pillar focused on building infrastructure.

The plan also highlights the state of the U.S.’ electric grid and proposals for policy actions to spur upgrades, including greater use of nuclear fission and nuclear fission as a way to source reliable power.

Heller also pointed to the plan as having “detailed guidance that you don’t typically see,” while the investment environment in the U.S. also looks promising to Amentum.

“All of what's happening is making the economics better for investors. You're getting regulatory streamlining that's supported by bipartisan support. It's driven by our business community, AI, hyperscalers, electricity needs,” Heller said. “The credit environment and private funding is very positive. It's bringing the cost down, and of course, the need for electricity is indisputable to support our economy, as well as defense.”