American Electric Power and X-energy Study 960-Megawatt Nuclear Project in Indiana
Key Facts
American Electric Power and X-energy are studying the feasibility of developing a nuclear power project in Indiana with a proposed total capacity of 960 megawatts, according to an X-energy statement. The proposal aims to supply electricity to the regional grid and Amazon data centers, with Amazon planning to buy the project's output under a long-term contract, according to American Electric Power. The companies have identified a site near the former location of the retired Breed power plant in Sullivan County for a study into developing the proposed nuclear plant. X-energy said the proposed industrial redevelopment site is owned by American Electric Power, its partner in studying the project. Moving from the feasibility study to construction and operation remains subject to the project reaching a final investment decision, according to the utility's statement.
Amazon's involvement combines development capital with plans to buy electricity over the long term, according to details the companies released about the project arrangements. X-energy said Amazon's development capital is tied to specified milestones, linking the funding to progress in developing the proposal. American Electric Power said the power purchase arrangements would cover "the costs of the facility and its operation" throughout the contract Amazon plans to enter into. The proposed financial coverage therefore includes the cost of the facility itself, alongside the operations required to run it during the power purchase agreement. The Indiana proposal joins Energy Northwest's Cascade Advanced Energy Facility in Washington state as part of the collaboration between Amazon and X-energy.
At the preliminary design stage, the companies are studying a plant comprising 12 Xe-100 reactor units, according to X-energy's statement on the proposed Sullivan County project. Each unit has a designed electrical capacity of 80 megawatts, according to reactor specifications the company provided in a separate statement on its nuclear plans in the United Kingdom. The proposal calls for the units to be arranged in groups of 4 within the plant, according to technical details released by American Electric Power. The reactor technology uses helium as a coolant, according to X-energy, which is developing the design for the plant whose feasibility is being assessed in Indiana. The proposal brings these units together in a single project, with a total capacity under study, within power purchase arrangements intended to serve Amazon and the regional grid.
On nuclear fuel, X-energy announced the completion of vertical construction at the TX-1 fuel fabrication facility being developed by TRISO-X in the United States. The facility is in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, where work has moved from completing the structure to fitting out the interior, according to the company's statement on construction progress. The next phase includes installing fuel fabrication equipment inside the facility, as part of work following completion of vertical construction and preceding the start of nuclear fuel production operations. Once operational, the facility aims to have the capacity to supply fuel for up to 11 Xe-100 reactors, according to the target capacity announced by X-energy. That target capacity relates to the fuel fabrication facility in Tennessee, which is intended to supply reactors of the same type proposed for the Indiana project.
Alongside the study of the nuclear proposal, American Electric Power plans to invest about $4 billion in a separate fuel-cell power generation project, according to its statement. That project has a capacity of 702 megawatts and is located near Cheyenne, Wyoming, as part of the company's announced plans to develop a generating facility using the technology. The project is linked to a power purchase agreement with Google, adding another technology company to the arrangements to buy output from generation projects announced by American Electric Power. The fuel-cell project's power purchase agreement runs for 20 years, according to the company's statement on the planned investment near Cheyenne. These plans divide the generation solutions proposed for technology customers between fuel cells for the Google project and nuclear reactors for the Indiana proposal involving Amazon.
On the technology's regulatory path, X-energy said the Xe-100 design had been accepted into the United Kingdom's Generic Design Assessment process for nuclear reactors. The announcement came in the company's statement on progress with its nuclear plans with Centrica, a process involving British regulators' assessment of the reactor design. X-energy expects the assessment to take about 3 years, according to the timeframe in its statement on those plans. In the fuel supply chain, the announced next steps for the Tennessee facility are to complete the interior fit-out and install manufacturing equipment following completion of vertical construction. For the Indiana project, the decisive step before moving to construction and operation remains reaching the final investment decision that American Electric Power has set as a condition for proceeding.