Amazon continues to invest in the Tri-Cities region – now in nuclear energy. 

The retail giant – which recently opened a national inbound cross dock in Pasco – is partnering with Energy Northwest on a project that aims to bring four advanced small modular reactors to land near the Columbia Generating Station by the Hanford site. 

Energy Northwest will build, own and run the reactors, which are expected to generate about 320 megawatts of capacity, Amazon said in a statement.  

The public power agency based in Richland has the option to add up to eight more reactors at the site, bringing the total generating capacity to 960 megawatts. 

“These projects will help meet the forecasted energy needs of the Pacific Northwest beginning in the early 2030s,” Amazon said in the statement. 

They’ll also generate local jobs. Amazon’s agreement with Energy Northwest is expected to support up to 1,000 construction jobs and 100-plus permanent jobs once the facility is fully up and running, the company said, citing information from Energy Northwest. 

The Morrison Energy Center at 345 Hills St. in Richland  is now home to Energy Northwest’s Energy Services & Development team.

| Courtesy Amazon

Power for Amazon, others 

Amazon’s role is to pay for the initial feasibility phase of the project, which the company said fits with its commitment to continue investing in renewables and seeking out additional carbon-free energy sources. 

Greg Cullen

“Nuclear power is one part of that mix – it can be brought online at scale and has a decades-long record of providing a reliable source of safe carbon-free energy for communities around the world,” the company said. 

“This is a funding agreement for the next two years, to do all the activities we need in the next two years, which will get us to the point of construction,” said Greg Cullen, vice president for energy services and development for Energy Northwest, at the organization’s recent Public Power Forum in Kennewick. The activities funded include permit applications. 

Through the pact with Energy Northwest, Amazon will have the right to buy electricity from the first four reactors. If the others are built, the power will be available to Amazon and northwest utilities, according to a statement from Energy Northwest. 

Amazon didn’t disclose the amount of its investment. 

Small modular reactors, or SMRs, are nuclear reactors that are much smaller and quicker to build than conventional reactors. The models to be used in Richland will be Xe-100 reactors, designed by the Maryland-based X-energy. 

Clay Sell

This will be X-energy’s second set of four SMRs, said Clay Sell, CEO of X-energy, during the Public Power Forum.
 The first will be built in Texas with Dow Chemical. 

“A lot of the work that we’re doing, at least 60-70% of the work, that we’re doing on the Dow project will be replicated on this project,” he said. “… A lot of those tools and processes and procedures that we develop in conjunction with Dow we will seek to replicate with Energy Northwest.” 

Energy Northwest and X-energy have been working on plans for an SMR facility using the Xe-100 design for some time. A joint development agreement was announced last year. 

Amazon also is investing in X-energy. 

‘Thinking big’ 

Power availability is a growing concern in the Mid-Columbia, especially as more projects with significant energy requirements look to locate here, such as Atlas Agro’s proposed Pacific Green Fertilizer plant in Richland. The $1.5 billion project is nearing a decision point. 

Diahann Howard, executive director of the Port of Benton, said the Amazon-Energy Northwest announcement is “tremendous” for the region.  

“We are limited in electrical capacity,” she said during a recent port commission meeting. “We are 300 to 600 megawatts short of the power that we need to grow this community. We are not set up with our utilities to be able to absorb that kind of an expense, so for data centers or other investors to come in to help offset that really sets us up as a region for continued opportunity for growth, so we’re really, really pleased about this.” 

The Central Washington Building Trades Unions said it stands ready to supply the skilled labor needed to build “the future.”

“The way I see it we must have two things, the people to build the future and the energy to power it. The Central Washington Building Trades is committed to supply the next generation of skilled crafts to build the future and this investment represents an important commitment to power it,” said Nickolas A. Bumpaous, president of the Central Washington Building Trades and business manager for UA Plumbers & Steamfitters Local Union 598.

Kevin Miller

Kevin Miller, Amazon’s vice president of global data centers, said his company is proud to be working with Energy Northwest, which he described in a statement as “a utility company that’s also thinking big about meeting society’s growing energy demands while addressing climate change.” He added that the SMR project is “a significant step toward Amazon’s Climate Pledge commitment to reach net-zero carbon across our operations by 2040 and signifies our continued dedication to becoming a more sustainable company.” 

Energy Northwest also had praise for Amazon. 

“We’ve been working for years to develop this project at the urging of our members, and have found that taking this first, bold step is difficult for utilities, especially those that provide electricity to ratepayers at the cost of production. We applaud Amazon for being willing to use their financial strength, need for power and know-how to lead the way to a reliable, carbon-free power future for the region,” Cullen said in a statement. 

Other projects 

Amazon also is making investments in nuclear energy in other parts of the country. 

It’s signed a pact with Dominion Energy to explore an SMR project near the utility’s North Anna nuclear power station in Virginia, it announced.  

The company also bought a data center campus in Pennsylvania from Talen Energy earlier this year in a $650 million deal, S&P Global reported. The campus is powered by an adjacent nuclear power plant. 

Amazon said it’s looking to the future. “As we continue to create and preserve these sources of safe, carbon-free energy, we’re addressing the future energy demands of our business, making progress toward our sustainability goals, and supporting local communities across the country,” the company said.