US-based Energy Northwest has selected AtkinsRéalis Group as the Owner’s Engineer for its small modular reactor (SMR) project development in Washington state. In 2023, Energy Northwest said X-energy’s Xe-100 was its preferred SMR technology. The company recently announced an agreement with Amazon and X-energy to develop 4-12 SMRs, which, it said, will lead to clean, reliable, sustainable and carbon-free energy for the Northwest.
Under the Owner’s Engineering Services Contract, AtkinsRéalis will support the design, licensing, construction and commissioning of the SMR project. Work will be supported by the recently opened state-of-the-art 32,000 square-foot AtkinsRéalis Technology Center (ATC) in Richland. The ATC is a fully integrated engineering and technology facility dedicated to advancement and testing of technical innovations.
Energy Northwest has embarked on a multi-year feasibility phase agreement with Amazon, which will focus on comprehensive environmental, safety, permitting, licensing and risk analyses. If the project is approved, the next phase will lead to submission of a construction permit application to build the SMRs.
“We are thrilled to see utilities worldwide turning to AtkinsRéalis to support strategic public-private-partnerships by leveraging the deployment of nuclear power technology,” said AtkinsRéalis President & CEO Ian Edwards. “This partnership with Energy Northwest will highlight SMRs capability to support the AI revolution with safe and clean electricity for generations.”
Greg Cullen, Vice President for Energy Services & Development at Energy Northwest said: “AtkinsRéalis possesses extensive technical expertise on developing complex energy projects, which makes them an ideal partner. This collaboration not only supports the proposed development of next-generation nuclear technology, but will bring lasting benefits to our region, including job creation, economic growth, and clean, firm and reliable energy.”
The Xe-100 is a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor with a thermal output of 200 MWt or an electrical output of 80 MWe. It can be scaled into a four-pack 320 MWe power plant, fuelled by the company’s proprietary TRISO-X tri-structural isotropic particle fuel. The Xe-100 evolved from both the UK’s Dragon reactor at Winfrith in Dorset and the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor project in South Africa. X-energy was selected by the US Department of Energy (DOE) in 2020 to receive up to $1.2bn in matching funds under the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP) to develop, license, build, and demonstrate an operational advanced reactor and fuel fabrication facility by the end of the decade. X-Energy has since completed the reactor engineering and basic design and is developing a fuel fabrication facility in Oak Ridge in Tennessee.
