X-Energy Gets $149M Tax Credit for TRISO Fuel Plant

• X-Energy Gets $149M Investment Tax Credit for TRISO Fuel Plant
• Centrus Makes First HALEU Delivery to DOE
• Terrestrial Energy IMSR Offered to Power Schneider Electric Data Centers
• EU Approves €300M Aid for Nuward’s Small Nuclear Reactor R&D
• UAE Reported to Plan Four More Nuclear Reactors
• NRC to Issue Proposed Generic Environmental Impact Statement Rulemaking for New Reactors

X-Energy Gets $149M Investment Tax Credit for TRISO Fuel Plant

X Energy, LLC has been awarded a $148.5 million tax credit for the construction by its wholly-owned subsidiary, TRISO-X LLC, of a first-of-a-kind advanced nuclear fuel fabrication facility (TX-1) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Funded by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the award is part of the Qualifying Advanced Energy Project Tax Credit program jointly administered by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the U.S. Department of the Treasury, and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

The 215,000-square-foot TX-1 fuel fabrication facility is designed to produce up to 714,000 pebbles per year along with other nuclear fuel products. Located within the Horizon Center Industrial Park, the 110-acre TRISO-X campus is situated on land that was formerly part of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and was part of a tract released in 1996 for private development to help diversify the region’s economic base.

TRISO-X acquired the campus from the Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board in 2022. X-energy’s investment in the TX-1 project is expected to create approximately 400 permanent jobs and 475 construction jobs.

TRISO-X has requested a 40-year license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to possess and use special nuclear material to manufacture advanced nuclear fuel. Its application was submitted and accepted by the NRC in 2022.The Commission currently reports that the review is 45% complete.

Tri-structural isotropic (TRISO) particle fuel is considered “the most robust nuclear fuel on the planet,” according to the DOE, because it can withstand very high temperatures without melting, which is key to its safety. TRISO-X manufactures its own proprietary version of TRISO fuel to ensure supply, improve quality, and reduce costs. TRISO-X has operated a pilot nuclear fuel fabrication facility at ORNL since 2016, serving as a demonstration facility of the company’s patented TRISO fabrication processes.

“This award is not just an investment in our technology and innovations, it’s a massive step forward for building the supply chain to advance the next generation of nuclear energy,” said X-energy CEO, J. Clay Sell.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) is supporting the initial deployment of X-energy’s Xe-100 advanced small modular reactor at Dow’s Seadrift, Texas facility. It is expected to be the first grid-scale advanced nuclear reactor deployed to serve an industrial site in North America. ARDP is also providing support for the development of TX-1, and the initial TRISO-X nuclear fuel produced in Oak Ridge will be used for the project.

TerraPower’s Nuclear Fuel Plant

In October 2022 Global Nuclear Fuel–Americas (GNF-A), a GE-led joint venture, and TerraPower announced an agreement to build the Natrium Fuel Facility at the site of GNF-A’s existing plant site near Wilmington, NC. The Natrium Fuel Facility will be jointly funded by TerraPower and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) through the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, which aims to speed the demonstration of advanced reactors through cost-shared partnerships with U.S. industry. The facility represents an investment of more than $200 million. The Natrium Fuel Facility would utilize high-assay, low-enriched uranium (HALEU).

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Centrus Makes First HALEU Delivery to DOE

Centrus Energy Corp. announced that it has made its first delivery of 20 Kg (54 lbs)  of High-Assay, Low-Enriched Uranium (HALEU) to the U.S. Department of Energy, completing Phase One of its contract with the Department by successfully demonstrating its HALEU production process.

Centrus will now move on to Phase Two of the contract – requiring a full year of HALEU production at the rate of 900 kilograms per year at its American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio.

Under a competitively awarded, cost-share contract signed with the U.S. Department of Energy in 2022, Centrus is required to begin production of HALEU by the end of this year. Centrus began enrichment operations in October – two months ahead of schedule.

By completing delivery of more than 20 kilograms of HALEU to the Department, Centrus has finished Phase One of the contract. The Department takes delivery of the HALEU on site in Piketon and is obligated to provide the HALEU storage cylinders to collect the HALEU from the cascade in the form of UF6.. Centrus has constructed a storage facility where the HALEU will be kept until it is needed. Eventually, it will need to be converted into a solid form to be fabricated into HALEU fuel specifically made for each type of advanced reactor.

Phase One included a 50% cost share requirement for Centrus, with the company and the Department each contributing about $30 million of the $60 million overall cost. In Phase Two of the contract, the Department will pay Centrus on a cost-plus incentive fee basis for the HALEU the company produces.

HALEU is an advanced nuclear fuel required for most of the next-generation reactor designs currently under development. The capacity of the 16-centrifuge cascade is modest – about 900 kilograms of HALEU per year – but with sufficient funding and offtake commitments, Centrus could significantly expand production.

A full-scale HALEU cascade, consisting of 120 centrifuge machines, with a combined capacity to produce approximately 6,000 Kg (6 tonnes) of HALEU per year (6 MTU/year), could be producing HALEU within 42 months after securing the necessary funding. With appropriate support, Centrus could add a second HALEU cascade six months later and subsequent cascades every two months after that.

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Terrestrial Energy IMSR Offered to Power Schneider Electric Data Centers

Terrestrial Energy, a developer of Generation IV advanced nuclear power plants that use its proprietary Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) technology for industrial heat and power supply, and Schneider Electric, a Fortune Global 500 supplier of digital control systems for energy management, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to jointly develop commercial opportunities and advance the deployment of IMSR plants.

This collaboration offers solutions to the major energy challenges faced by data center operators and many heavy industries operating a wide range of industrial processes such as hydrogen, ammonia, aluminum, and steel production. These high-energy users require low-cost, reliable and emissions-free baseload supply that offers an alternative to intermittent renewable power with storage or carbon emitting fossil fuel power plants.

The IMSR’s heat and power supply has many industrial uses that require reliable, baseload zero-carbon energy supply at near-site locations, such as dedicated power for large data centers and cogeneration for heavy industrial facilities. Schneider Electric systems automate and optimize energy management for improved performance, efficiency, and contribute to the commercial and sustainability goals of its customers.

In April 2023, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), following a systematic and multi-year review against nuclear regulatory requirements, concluded that there were no fundamental barriers to licensing the IMSR plant for commercial use. This was the first-ever regulatory review of a commercial nuclear plant using molten salt reactor technology and the first advanced, high-temperature fission technology to complete a review of this type.

A review of documents in the ADAMS library at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission shows a stream of topical reports submitted by Terrestrial Energy but does not indicate a calendar of regulatory actions including a planned date for submission of a license application for its IMSR reactor design.

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EU Approves €300M Aid for Nuward’s Small Nuclear Reactor R&D

The European Commission has approved a €300 million French measure to support Electricité de France’s (EDF) subsidiary  in researching and developing small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs). The measure will contribute to the achievement of the strategic objectives of the European industrial strategy and the European Green Deal.

France notified to the Commission its plan to grant €300 million to Nuward to support its research and development (R&D) project on SMR technology. Under the measure, the aid will take the form of a direct grant of up to €300 million that will cover the R&D project until early 2027.

The project aims to develop SMRs with a power output of less than 300 MWe. The front-end design is the third phase of the overall Nuward project, which contains five distinct phases. In December 2022, the Commission already approved a €50 million French measure to support the second phase of the project, aimed at acquiring new knowledge for the design and construction of SMRs.

The measure will support Nuward in sizing the modules and components of the SMRs and validating their integration in the SMRs by means of numerical simulators and laboratory tests. (Image right: Nuward Technical Features. Source: EDF file.)

Nuward will also carry out industrialization studies relating to the modular design and mass production of SMRs. The measure will also support Nuward in the preparation of the required safety demonstrations for the approval of the project by the national nuclear safety authorities.

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UAE Reported to Plan Four More Nuclear Reactors

Reuters reports that the United Arab Emirates will tender shortly for the construction of a new nuclear power plant that would double the number of the small Gulf state’s nuclear reactors. The UAE plans to seek bids this year, potentially within the next few months. Locations under consideration for the new nuclear plant include a coastal site nearer to the border with Saudi Arabia or adjacent to the existing four reactors at the Barakah site.

According to the wire service report, the UAE plans award the tender and start construction as soon as this year so that the new plant would be operational by 2032. The tender would be open to any potential bidders, including U.S., Chinese and Russian firms, adding that South Korea would not be treated as a preferred bidder.

South Korea built four 1,400 MWe PWRs in the UAE. Construction of the first unit broke ground in 2012 and the fourth unit was connected to the grid earlier this year.

According to Reuters, when asked about plans for a second plant, the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR) said it was ready to review and issue the necessary licences and regulations that would be needed when and if the government decides to build new plants. State-owned Emirates Nuclear Energy Co (ENEC) offered a word salad of a reponse saying only that it was “exploring opportunities.”

Opening the tender to Russia and China could create tensions with the US in terms of the bilaterial relations between the two countries. Saudi Arabia’s tender for two full size PWRs is open to bids from these countries, but has not yet been awarded despite the submission of best and final bids late last year.

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NRC to Issue Proposed Generic Environmental Impact Statement Rulemaking for New Reactors

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has directed the staff to issue for public comment a proposed Generic Environmental Impact Statement rulemaking that is intended for potential use by applicants and the agency during new nuclear reactor licensing.

The NRC is proposing a technology-neutral approach for the GEIS to cover different reactor designs. It would cover any new nuclear reactor application meeting the parameters used to develop the GEIS.

The proposed GEIS would streamline the environmental reviews for future new nuclear reactors by presenting generic environmental impacts for those designs that fit within certain site and plant parameters. If the rule is finalized, new reactor license applications would supplement applicable generic environmental findings with evaluation of project-specific issues.

The NRC will seek public comment on the proposed rule following its publication in the Federal Register. Public meetings and other methods to submit comments will be publicized when the proposed rule is published.  The NRC did not announce the data for publication of the proposed rule in the Federal Register.

In its direction to the staff to issue the draft regulation, the Commission stipulated several changes to the internal document.

• The staff should revise the rulemaking package and related draft guidance documents to change the limited applicability of this GEIS from solely “advanced nuclear reactors” to any new nuclear reactor application. The staff should remove the definition of “advanced nuclear reactor” from the rulemaking package and related guidance documents.
• In light of the Commission’s direction in SRM-SECY-23-0001 to regulate near-term fusion systems under the 10 CFR Part 30 byproduct material framework, the staff should remove references to fusion reactors in the proposed GEIS rule.

NIA Applauds NRC Action

The Nuclear Innovation Alliance (NIA), a think tank and public advocate for nuclear energy, applauded the NRC’s decision to release the proposed rule for public comment. NIA Executive Director Judi Greenwald said;

“The ANR GEIS will enable applicants and staff to use generic staff findings on 100 of 121 environmental issues in the ANR GEIS generally applicable to advanced reactors as the basis for their project specific environmental reviews. This proposed rule would enable applicants, NRC staff, and the public to focus on project-specific environmental issues for future environmental reviews for advanced reactors. NRC staff estimate that the use of the ANR GEIS could reduce the costs of environmental reviews for new advanced reactors by between 20% and 45% depending on the project. The Commission’s vote to codify ANR GEIS builds on agency best practices for environmental reviews and will enable the more effective, efficient, and predictable licensing of advanced reactors.”

The NIA recently published a policy brief that connects the role of advanced nuclear energy in meeting climate and energy security goals with the urgent need for NRC reform to enable advanced nuclear energy.

It outlines the short, medium, and, long-term NRC reforms that are necessary to achieve that goal. It provides recommendations for action by Congress and the NRC and highlights several of NIA’s recommendations for improving licensing efficiency. NIA developed this brief to serve as a guide for policymakers, the NRC itself, and key stakeholders in considering and then taking action to ensure the NRC can “become an agile, modern, risk-informed, and performance-based regulator to successfully meet this moment.”

Prior coverage on this blog – NRC is Missing the Boat on Climate Change

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