By GREENBELT, Md. — The U.S. Department of Energy announced that X-energy has won a $40 million grant to develop the Xe-100 pebble bed High Temperature Gas-Cooled reactor (HTGR). The development grant includes $6MM in FY16, which will be supplemented with additional investor funding from X-energy.
Dr. Kam Ghaffarian, X-energy CEO: “My vision in founding X-energy was to develop a clean-energy solution that significantly improves global quality of life. Today, we have taken a giant step towards that dream. I am incredibly proud of the X-energy team, and we look forward to a productive collaboration with the Department of Energy.”
Harlan Bowers, X-energy President: “Our Xe-100 pebble bed HTGR builds upon the Department of Energy’s significant investment in TRISO fuel technology under the Next Generation Nuclear Plant/Advanced Gas Reactor Programs. X-energy’s internal investments, coupled with this funding, position the Xe-100 among the most promising advanced reactors under development today. We are thrilled that the DOE recognizes the Xe-100’s advantages: a clean, affordable, secure design with electrical generation and industrial process steam capabilities. This development funding will help shrink our carbon footprint and revive America’s leadership in this critical technology.”
The funding focuses on targeted technology development, including core modeling, fuel fabrication, and Nuclear Regulatory Commission outreach. X-energy’s team includes BWXT, Teledyne Brown Engineering, SGL Group, Oregon State University, Idaho National Laboratory, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Dr. Pete Pappano, Vice President for Fuel Production and Project Principal Investigator: “The Xe-100 has remarkable benefits, enabled by the unique functional containment properties of the TRISO fuel. DOE’s previous investment in TRISO fuel and advanced reactor concepts, combined with this award, are a game changer in accelerating the deployment of safe, clean energy in the United States.”
About X-energy:
X-energy is dedicated to developing transformational energy solutions through the application of innovative nuclear technology. X-energy is designing the Xe-100, an advanced nuclear reactor that will expand nuclear power into new markets in increments of approximately 50MWe. The Xe-100 is a small and simple design that requires less time to construct, with factory-produced components, and will be “walk-away” safe without operator intervention during loss of coolant conditions. X-energy is based in Greenbelt, Maryland.
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