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X-energy Commences First Irradiation Tests of Advanced TRISO-X Nuclear Fuel at Idaho National Laboratory

LCG, November 6, 2025--X-energy Reactor Company, LLC, (X-energy) and the U.S. Office of Nuclear Energy today announced the start of confirmatory irradiation testing at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to qualify X-energy’s proprietary TRISO-X fuel pebbles for commercial use in the Xe-100 Small Modular Reactor (SMR). (TRISO stands for TRi-structural ISOtropic). This is the first time that TRISO-X fuel pebbles will undergo irradiation testing in a U.S. lab, which is a critical step in meeting requirements set forth by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for the commercial deployment of advanced reactors that will use the fuel.

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NextEra Energy and Google Collaborate on Accelerating Nuclear Power Deployment

LCG, October 28, 2025--NextEra Energy and Google yesterday announced two agreements that will help meet growing electricity demand from artificial intelligence (AI) with clean, reliable, 24/7 nuclear power and strengthen the nation's nuclear leadership. First, Google signed a new, 25-year agreement for power generated at the Duane Arnold Energy Center, Iowa's only nuclear power facility. The 601-MW boiling water reactor unit was shut down in 2020 and is expected to commence operations by the first quarter of 2029, pending regulatory approvals to restart the plant.

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Industry News

ERCOT reviewed Frio County Transmission Project

June 18, 2020 - In November 2019, 7X Energy submitted the Frio County Transmission Project to the ERCOT Regional Planning Group (RPG) as an economic-driven project to address projected transmission congestion in the Frio County area. This is supported by an independent economic benefit study performed by LCG Consulting using its proprietary UPLAN model, the same economic planning model utilized by ERCOT, in accordance with ERCOT procedures. LCG’s analysis shows significant annual production cost benefit for the transmission upgrades in question.

In the independent review completed in May 2020, ERCOT identified transmission congestion on the 69-kV and 138-kV transmission system in Frio County, and a total of seven transmission upgrade options were evaluated. ERCOT concluded that the upgrades identified in Option 5 would provide the most cost-effective solution to the identified congestion while meeting the ERCOT economic planning criteria. Option 5 is estimated to cost $12.13 million and is described as follows:
  • Rebuild the Moore – Big Foot 138-kV line such that the summer normal and emergency ratings are at least 485 MVA

  • Reconductor the Moore – Hondo Creek 138-kV line such that the summer normal and emergency ratings are at least 382 MVA

The recommended option is classified as a Tier 2 project based on the ERCOT Protocol Section 3.11.4.3(2), and the project is expected to be in-service by Summer 2021.
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