Amazon will fund the initial feasibility phase of an SMR project, which is planned to be sited near Energy Northwest’s Columbia nuclear power station in Richland, Washington. Columbia has a single 1,131 MW boiling water reactor unit that began commercial operation in 1984.
Richland-based Energy Northwest said the SMRs will be of the Xe-100 design, a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor developed by Maryland-based X-energy.
Each Xe-100 module can provide 80 MW of full-time electricity. Energy Northwest and X-energy have engaged extensively on plans for an Xe-100 facility since 2020, a statement said.
Amazon is offering almost $334m for a multiyear feasibility study of a cluster of SMRs to be built at the Columbia site.
Amazon said in October that it was buying a stake in US X-energy, as part of a collaboration with the company aimed at deploying SMRs to provide low-carbon electricity to power its data centres.
Under the agreement with Energy Northwest, Amazon will have the right to purchase electricity from the first project of four modules, which is expected to generate 320 MW of energy capacity.
Energy Northwest has the option to further build out the site by adding up to eight additional modules resulting in a total project generating capacity of up to 960 MWs.
“This additional power will be available to Amazon and northwest utilities to power homes and businesses,” Energy Northwest said.
