en.Wedoany.com Reported - On May 18, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) announced the completion of its environmental assessment (EA) for the construction permit application (CPA) for the proposed advanced nuclear project by Dow and X-energy in Seadrift, Texas. Following a comprehensive independent analysis, the NRC completed its review ahead of schedule and issued a "Finding of No Significant Impact" (FONSI).
The project, named the Long Mott Power Station, is being developed by Long Mott Energy LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dow, under the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP). It is intended to supply electricity and high-temperature industrial steam to Dow's UCC Seadrift facility, enabling the production of over 4 billion pounds of materials annually. Once completed, the Long Mott Power Station is expected to become the first grid-scale advanced nuclear reactor in North America to power an industrial site.
The NRC's environmental assessment was based on an independent analysis of potential impacts on air quality, water resources, and local species habitats, conducted in accordance with globally recognized safety and environmental standards. The review was completed in less than a year, thanks to pre-licensing work done by X-energy on its XE-100 small modular reactor and the submission of a comprehensive CPA document.
The cooperative agreement included an environmental report exceeding 1,000 pages, supported by a year-long field survey, 12 months of water quality measurements from groundwater monitoring wells, and collaboration with multiple state agencies, including the Texas Historical Commission, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, and the Texas General Land Office. Both parties implemented numerous environmental mitigation measures during the project, including identifying sensitive habitats before finalizing site layout, proposing siting options to avoid impacts on protected resources, and incorporating environmental constraints during the design phase.
Edward Stones, Vice President of Energy and Climate Business at Dow, stated that this is a significant milestone for the Long Mott Energy project, bringing the company one step closer to expanding safe, clean, reliable, and cost-competitive nuclear energy supply in the United States. Dragan Popovic, Chief Global Operations Officer at X-energy, said that this approval creates a replicable pathway for improving the efficiency of the licensing process, noting that every efficiency gain must be earned, starting with a complete, high-quality application and an inherently safe technology.
X-energy's Xe-100 is an 80-megawatt high-temperature gas-cooled reactor designed to minimize environmental impact. The reactor uses helium coolant, produces no radioactivity during operation, and its extremely low water consumption avoids significant impacts on aquatic ecosystems, while the absence of cooling towers or water intake structures reduces visual and environmental disruption. Since 2018, X-energy has collaborated with the NRC through extensive pre-application engagement to demonstrate the safety performance of the Xe-100, laying the groundwork for improving the efficiency of the entire licensing process.
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