X-energy announces it has signed the Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) Cooperative Agreement, officially marking the beginning of the company's participation in ARDP and partnership with DOE.
ROCKVILLE, MD – X-energy signs Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) Cooperative Agreement, marking the beginning of the ~$2.5 billion project to build the world’s first commercial scale advanced reactor.
March 1, 2021 – X-energy announces it has signed the Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) Cooperative Agreement, officially marking the beginning of the company's participation in ARDP and partnership with DOE. This ~$2.5 billion project will enable X-energy to build the world’s first commercial scale advanced nuclear reactor with Energy Northwest in Washington state. ARDP is designed to spur domestic private industry to demonstrate advanced reactors in the United States and the global export market. DOE selected X-energy as one of two awardees for ARDP in October 2020, providing $80 million in initial funding to build an advanced reactor that can be operational within seven years. In total, DOE will invest approximately $1.23 billion in X-energy’s project over the seven-year period for this demonstration.
“After the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program award was made, the X-energy and DOE teams were able to quickly find alignment on next steps,” said Clay Sell, X-energy CEO. “A testament that we at X-energy are in a position to move forward, to demonstrate a proven technology, to scale our commercial fuel facility and to continue forward with building our four-reactor power plant.”
“This milestone affirms the belief and commitment that the Department of Energy has in the Xe-100 advanced reactor design and our TRISO-X fuel,” said Darren Gale, X-energy Vice President and ARDP Program Manager. “A clear reinforcement of DOE’s confidence in the ability of X-energy and our utility partner Energy Northwest to complete the demonstration of our commercial advanced nuclear power plant project.”
“Energy Northwest is excited about the progress this cooperative agreement signifies,” said Greg Cullen, Energy Northwest Vice President for Energy Services and Development. “We are committed to our partnership with X-energy and the successful development and commercial deployment of the nation’s first advanced reactor in Washington state. As a clean energy leader, we believe X-energy’s innovative carbon-free technology will be an invaluable asset to meeting the state’s clean energy goals.”
The Xe-100 is an 80 MWe (scalable to a 320 MWe four-pack) high temperature gas-cooled reactor. It uses TRi-structural ISOtropic particle fuel (TRISO), manufactured by X-energy, that can integrate into large, regional electricity systems as a base and load-following source of carbon-free power. As such, it can optimize grid use of low-emission, intermittent renewables and other clean energy resources. The reactor is also ideal for project sites and other power applications, including as a source for industrial process heat. As part of the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, X-energy and its supply chain partners will deliver a commercial four-unit nuclear power plant of its Xe-100 reactor design and a commercial scale TRISO fuel fabrication facility.
About X-energy
X-energy is redefining nuclear energy. It manufactures fuel that seals uranium particles in a protective coating, which makes meltdown impossible and retains the uranium fuel inside forever. X-energy also designs plants that unlock the fuel's energy potential in a process that's as clean as wind or solar. When combined, the result is reliable carbon-free baseload power, produced more safely and affordably than ever before and available anywhere, at any time. For more information, visit https://x-energy.com or connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn or Instagram.
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