Local leaders in the nuclear industry are applauding the U.S. Department of Energy’s recent commitment to provide the fuel needed for the next-generation of nuclear reactors to five U.S. developers working to bring that technology to the market.

The federal agency provided conditional commitments to TRISO-X LLC; Kairos Power LLC; Radiant Industries Inc.; Westinghouse Electric Company LLC and TerraPower LLC, according to a release. That means those companies are on deck to receive high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) from DOE sources since there are not currently domestic suppliers, some as early as this year.

The Tri-Cities will potentially have a role in using HALEU in advanced reactors such as small modular reactors, or SMRs, and producing HALEU for domestic use. As a result, DOE’s announcement represents a significant step toward bringing those developments to fruition, nuclear leaders said.

“The DOE’s commitment to supplying high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) to five U.S. nuclear developers, including X-energy, is critical for advancing next-generation nuclear technologies,” said Bob Schuetz, CEO of Energy Northwest, in a statement provided to the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business.

Interest in nuclear power has grown in recent years as a result of growing energy demands. The proliferation of artificial intelligence and the power-hungry data centers required to deploy it has further added to the hunt for reliable and plentiful energy sources.

In May, President Donald Trump issued four executive orders focused on deploying advanced nuclear reactors for national security and defense purposes, reforming the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and DOE’s nuclear reactor testing and rebuilding the industrial infrastructure to support reactor facilities, such as fuel processors and recyclers.

Many advanced reactors require HALEU, which has a higher uranium content than the fuels used in present day commercial nuclear reactors. The difference in fuel allows for smaller reactor designs, longer operating cycles, and increased efficiencies over current technologies. DOE established the HALEU Availability Program in 2020 to secure a domestic supply of HALEU for civilian domestic research, development, demonstration and commercial use. 

Amazon’s partnership with Energy Northwest to deploy at least four of X-energy’s Xe-100 SMRs was announced November 2024. Before those are built, X-energy is working with Dow Chemical on a project in Texas as part of the DOE’s Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, which will receive HALEU fuel.

“Energy Northwest, which is partnered with X-energy for a project in the Pacific Northwest, is closely following the Dow project’s progress and plans to build upon its success as a fast follower,” Schuetz said.

At the same time, France-based Framatome has plans to double the size of its Richland fuel manufacturing site by eventually constructing a new facility to produce HALEU fuel. Last year, Framatome was one of six companies that received a 10-year contract from the U.S. Department of Energy to produce HALEU fuel. That contract will provide each producer a minimum of $2 million with up to $800 million available. 

“By awarding an initial supply, these developers can continue their work to bring the reactors online to further diversify our nuclear energy generation. As a nuclear fuel supplier, we are here to support these nuclear suppliers to bring the next generation of reactors online,” the company said in a statement to the Journal.