Plans for an advanced small modular nuclear reactor project in the Tri-Cities area that will generate carbon-free electricity have taken a major step forward.

Energy Northwest, which operates the Columbia Generating Station north of Richland and several other clean energy generating facilities, has signed a joint development agreement with the Maryland-based X-energy for the project.

X-energy is a nuclear reactor and fuel design engineering company.

The project is set to include up to 12 Xe-100 advanced small modular reactors, designed by X-energy, with the first module expected to be brought online by 2030.

In all, the project will be able to generate up to 960 megawatts total of carbon-free electricity, according to a joint statement from Energy Northwest and X-energy.

“The Xe-100 high-temperature gas-cooled reactor technology can power a broad range of applications through its high-temperature steam output that can address the needs of large regional electricity providers as well as industrial manufacturing systems,” the statement said.

The modules are designed to be road-shippable, to drive scalability and to accelerate construction timelines and help manage construction costs.

U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Washington, praised the project.         

“It is exciting to see Energy Northwest and X-energy keep Central Washington at the forefront of energy innovation in this country while delivering on the growing need for clean energy technologies,” he said in a statement. “Advanced nuclear technology is bringing next-generation development to the marketplace, strengthening our nation’s energy security and providing economic security for businesses in Tri-Cities and beyond. I look forward to seeing the great benefits this project will bring to our communities and our nation.”

The project is planned for land next to the Columbia Generating Station.

Energy Northwest and X-energy have been working on plans for an Xe-100 project in the region since 2020. It was once in the running to be the first of its kind in the nation, but X-energy and the company Dow Inc. announced in May their joint development agreement to demonstrate the first grid-scale advanced nuclear reactor for an industrial site in North America.

That project, at Dow Inc.’s UCC Seadrift Operations site in Texas, is being paid for through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, or ARDP.

Clay Sell, CEO of X-energy, said his company is “eager to bring the insights and learnings from our ARDP experience to successfully deliver an Xe-100 nuclear power plant in Central Washington. Energy Northwest’s experience as a leading nuclear operator in the region uniquely positions it to showcase the benefits and scalability of advanced nuclear.”

Bob Schuetz, CEO of Energy Northwest, said X-energy’s advanced reactor technology “will be a valuable addition to our existing portfolio of carbon-free electric generating resources.”

He added that, “X-energy’s Xe-100 advanced reactor technology possesses many attributes ideally suited to a carbon-constrained electric system, and this agreement reflects our determination to deliver the technologies to meet growing clean energy needs.”