Small modular reactors approved in Texas as AI power demand grows

What has been approved

X-energy, a nuclear startup backed by Amazon, has received federal permission to build four small modular reactors at a Dow chemical manufacturing complex in Texas. According to TechRadar, the company describes the decision as the first construction authorisation for an advanced nuclear installation at an American industrial site.

Each Xe-100 reactor is designed to produce 80 megawatts of electricity, along with 200 megawatts of heat for industrial use. Together, the four units would deliver 320 megawatts of electrical generation, giving Dow an additional power source for its operations.

Approval to start construction is not the same as a working power plant. X-energy expects the installation to enter service sometime in the early 2030s, so several years of building and regulatory oversight lie ahead before the reactors supply any electricity.

How the reactor design works

The Xe-100 design departs from conventional nuclear plants in two main ways. It uses fuel made from uranium-bearing pellets, and it circulates helium gas through the reactor core to carry heat away, rather than using water as the cooling medium.

X-energy argues that this arrangement brings safety advantages compared with traditional reactor systems. The company also expects that factory-style production of smaller units will shorten build times and reduce costs compared with large nuclear projects.

Those claimed benefits have not yet been proven in practice. No small modular reactor currently operates commercially in the United States, which means the Texas installation will be an early test of whether the technology can deliver on its promises.

Safety concerns raised by critics

The approval has drawn criticism from the Union of Concerned Scientists, a group that scrutinises nuclear safety regulation. According to TechRadar, the organisation argued that the regulator, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, authorised construction before resolving important open safety questions.

Edwin Lyman, who heads nuclear safety work at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said the regulator had dealt with the matter by deferring critical safety questions to a later stage. In his view, those concerns should have been settled before construction was allowed at the industrial location.

The disagreement highlights a tension in the regulatory process. Developers want faster approvals to keep projects on schedule, while safety specialists want outstanding technical questions closed before concrete is poured.

Why technology companies are interested

The push for nuclear power is closely tied to the electricity needs of artificial intelligence. Computing facilities for AI require large and growing amounts of power, and conventional electricity suppliers are under pressure to keep up. That gap has created commercial openings for new generation technologies, including compact nuclear designs.

Amazon has become one of X-energy's main financial supporters through its Climate Pledge Fund. The company led a $500 million Series C-1 funding round in October 2024 and has separately agreed to purchase 5 gigawatts of nuclear generating capacity, giving X-energy a significant prospective customer.

X-energy also raised $1 billion through an initial public offering earlier this year. TechRadar notes that investor enthusiasm has cooled somewhat since the April listing, which suggests markets remain watchful about how quickly the company can turn plans into operating reactors.

What it means for AI data centers

The Texas project matters because it moves small modular reactors from concept towards delivery at a real industrial customer. If Dow's installation succeeds, it would demonstrate that compact reactors can be built on schedule and provide power to large facilities, including the data centers that AI companies need.

The timeline also shows the limits of nuclear power as a near-term answer. With service expected in the early 2030s, these reactors cannot relieve current pressure on electricity grids, and AI operators must find other sources in the meantime.

For now, the project's progress will depend on construction going smoothly and on regulators resolving the safety questions that critics say remain open. Readers who want the official position can consult the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's public records on the X-energy application.