X-energy and Dow win construction permit for four reactors at a Texas plastics site

The NRC cleared four Xe-100 reactors at Dow's Seadrift site, but Dow has not yet committed to building them.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Monday, November 9, approved a construction permit for X-energy and Dow Chemical to build four Xe-100 advanced reactors in Texas. The project, Long Mott Generating Station, would sit at Dow's UCC Seadrift Operations site, which makes plastics and petroleum derivatives and now relies on aging fossil-fueled equipment for power and heat. The review took under 18 months, a record pace for contested hearings.

Each Xe-100 is helium-cooled and designed for up to 80 MW of electricity and 200 MW of thermal energy. If built, Seadrift would be the first U.S. industrial site powered and heated directly by nuclear fission. It is also the first NRC construction approval for a high-temperature gas reactor in nearly 60 years. The two earlier U.S. units, at Peach Bottom and Fort St. Vrain, were retired early, which the IAEA attributes to funding and technical problems. The NRC has also approved three Kairos Power reactors in Tennessee and one TerraPower reactor in Wyoming.

The significance for abundance is the heat. Chemical and plastics production burns fossil fuels mainly for process heat, and a reactor that supplies firm, steady heat and electricity on site targets the hard-to-decarbonize part of making goods. A permit also shows that novel designs can get through licensing faster than before, a precondition for costs to fall as units repeat. X-energy hopes to build more than 11 gigawatts overall.

The caveats are large. Dow has made no final investment decision on the multibillion-dollar project and says it will weigh competitiveness, execution readiness and capital affordability. A final decision is not expected before 2028, though a preliminary one may be considered next year. Long Mott still needs an operating license, which could take about 18 months to review, and the earliest construction completion date is July 1, 2033. Fuel depends on X-energy's Tennessee fabrication facility, on track to open in early 2028. The streamlining of NRC regulation is also described as controversial.

Source: Canary Media