US X-energy Partners with Fluor to Advance Second Reactor Project

Recently, US advanced nuclear technology developer X-energy has officially selected Fluor Corporation to provide design and engineering services for its second Xe-100 high-temperature gas-cooled reactor commercial project. The project is the “Cascade” Advanced Energy Facility (Cascade Advanced Energy Facility) that Energy Northwest plans to build near Richland, Washington.

Under the plan, the “Cascade” facility will deploy 4 Xe-100 high-temperature gas-cooled reactors developed by X-energy, each with a capacity of 80 megawatts electric (MWe), for a total installed capacity of 320 megawatts, with the potential for future expansion to a total of 12 units. Under the commercial agreement between the two parties, Fluor Corporation will assume full responsibility for engineering, design development, supply chain management, cost estimation, and project controls services within the nuclear island scope.

The two companies previously collaborated on nuclear island engineering for the first Xe-100 project at Dow's UCC Seadrift Operations site in South Texas. The new agreement draws fully on the engineering and construction experience from the first Texas project, aiming to achieve long-term cost reduction and construction schedule optimization through standardized design and a repeatable project execution model. Meanwhile, a consortium comprising Kiewit Nuclear Solutions, Black & Veatch, and Aecon, known as “Cascade Nuclear Partners,” is responsible for the conventional island and overall plant integration requirements.

As the first project to be implemented under the strategic cooperation framework launched by X-energy and Amazon in 2024, the “Cascade” facility is committed to achieving the goal of deploying 5 gigawatts (GW) of new nuclear capacity by 2039. The relevant engineering team ensures seamless integration of key components and specialized capabilities by bringing in experienced engineering partners and suppliers early in project development, striving to accelerate the commercialization, mass production, and large-scale deployment of advanced nuclear technologies.