Plastics and chemicals producer Dow Chemical Company announced that it plans to launch a nuclear project at its UCC Seadrift Operations manufacturing complex in Texas. The company’s Long Mott Energy subsidiary and X-Energy Reactor Company submitted a construction application to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).
Deployment in the 2030s
The proposed generating station would serve as the first grid-scale advanced nuclear reactor at a North American industrial site, according to the NRC. If approved, Dow could begin construction by 2030 and deploy in the early 2030s as it retires the site’s natural gas-fired equipment.
Eliminating Greenhouse Gases
Dow reportedly wants to use four of X-energy’s Xe-100 advanced small reactors at the Seadrift site, which spans 4,700 acres and features nine production facilities. Dow owns eight of the plants, where the company manufactures plastics for various applications, including cable and wire insulation and food and beverage packaging.
The company expects the reactors to provide approximately 320 megawatts of electricity and help eliminate about 500,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually.
Past and Current Applicants
The NRC previously granted reactor construction permits to Abilene Christian University and Kairos Power. The agency is also evaluating an application from Bill Gates’ TerraPower to build a reactor in Wyoming.
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